Jain, Devaki,
Devaki Jain (born 1933) is an Indian economist and writer, who has worked mainly in the field of feminist economics. In 2006 she was awarded the Padma Bhushan, the third-highest civilian award from Government of India, for her contribution to social justice and the empowerment of women.

Jain, Gunjan,
Gunjan Jain is a textile and craft designer and researcher based in New Delhi, India. In 2008, she founded Vriksh (vrikshdesigns.com), a social design studio in which she has been collaborating with handloom weavers in the state of Odisha, India, where her focus has been to revive the dying and lesser known weaves of Odisha like the Ganjam Bomkai weave and Dhalapathar weave. She is known for her innovative work in Ikat textiles, Jala (extra weft), and natural dyed textile techniques. She offers contemporary aesthetics in traditional indian textiles yet retaining the cultural significance with the primary focus to further empower the artisans and their livelihood.
Apart from Odisha, Gunjan has worked as a freelance designer in Kashmir, Uttarakhand, Himachal Pradesh, West Bengal, Andhra Pradesh, Karnataka and Rajasthan on design development, skill training and capacity building, collaborating with master artisans on regional handcrafted textiles of block printing, hand embroidery and weaving. She has displayed her textile works in India, the United States, Singapore, London, India, Malaysia, Thailand, Indonesia, and Australia. 
Gunjan has been honored with the UNESCO award for Significant Innovations in Traditional Crafts 2022 in Uzbekistand and named Vogue India Fashion Fund's 'Designer of the Year 2016' in the Sari category. Her team of Vriksh weavers has won a record-setting eight National Awards and Odisha State Handloom Awards. Vriksh weavers have also been honoured with the Shanta Prasad Award for Excellence by the Crafts Council of India and the Sutrakar Samman by the Delhi Crafts Council.

Jain, Meghna,
Jain, Meghna is a student at the Indian Institute of Crafts and Design, Jaipur.

Jain, Rishav,
Rishav Jain works as an Assistant Professor at Faculty of Design and Senior Researcher at Design Innovation and Craft Resource Centre (DICRC) at CEPT University, Ahmedabad, India. He completed his Master’s in Interior Architecture and Design with specialization in Craft and Technology from Faculty of Design, CEPT University, Ahmedabad with a Gold Medal and a Best Research Award for his Post Graduate Research Thesis. He also has to his credit a Gold Medal and Academic Excellence Award for his Bachelor in Design (Interiors He has been a contributor to various national and international journals, magazines, blogs and forums through his research papers, articles and essays. His research areas largely focus on various approaches in interior architecture as related to space making crafts and the changing role of craftspeople and their position in the society. Rishav is currently working on his book on ‘Crafts in Interior Architecture: India, 1990 onwards’, which will be published this year.

Jaitly, Jaya,
Jaya Jaitly has worked for over four decades with craftspeople. Her interests are wide ranging and she has been the Assistant General Secretary of the Hind Mazdoor Kisan Panchayat, a major trade union. She joined active politics and the Janata Party in 1984. She has been the Secretary of the Janata Dal, General Secretary (1994) and President (2001) of the Samata Party. She moved away from party-bound politics in 2003. She is the founder and Chairperson of Dastkari Haat Samiti, an organization for crafts people and among her many activities she conceptualized the concept of Dilli Haat, a unique craft space in New Delhi. She regularly organizes workshops to upgrade craft skills and products; is a prolific writer and has several publications including five books on handicrafts to her credit.

Jinan, K.B,
Jinan has spent 40 years living with 'learning communities' of artisans and is relentless in his search for the process that enables knowledge creation. He believes that the modern educational paradigm is based on ‘how to teach’ and not on ‘how we naturally learn’. He has researched and systematically documented children’s spontaneous activities to decode how children simplify the complex world they experience in order to make sense of it. With over 4000 videos and images of various activities that children undertake, he convincingly presents proof. He also posits that creativity is an afterthought in the current teaching paradigm at schools, whereas it is the first principle in a learning paradigm (viz., when children engage in unstructured play) because learning means to uncover the unknown. Jinan has also been concerned with the homogenization and westernization of aesthetic sensibilities. He has dedicated 20 years to studying how aesthetic sensibilities are formed in traditional cultures and how modern education distorts these sensibilities. This led him to initiate a conference series to address the fragmented aesthetic sensibilities in modern man. His concern is that cultural diversity will soon be extinct if we don't explore various aspects of the formation of aesthetic sense in humans and the fundamental role of beauty in life.  

Johar, Navtej,
Navtej Johar is a Bharatanatyam exponent and a choreographer, whose work freely traverses between the traditional and the avant-garde. Johar has performed at prestigious venues all over the world and has worked extensively with prominent international companies and choreographers. He has collaborated with composers, as well as installation artists and has also acted in films directed by Deepa Mehta and Sabiha Sumar. A recipient of the Times of India Fellowship, 1995, and the Charles Wallace Fellowship, 1999, Johar was the performance director of the Commonwealth Parade, for the Queen's Golden Jubilee Celebrations, at London, in June 2002. A long time student and practitioner of yoga, he has been a yoga teacher since 1985 and runs his own studio, Studio Abhyas, at New Delhi. Navtej's long time interest in urban design has led him, in the last few years, to work actively with students, schools and young adults to relook at our city and to be involved with its improvement.

Johnson, Patty,
Patty Johnson is Canadian designer who is interested in the interchange between research and design, and, commerce and culture. Shecollaborates with partners, enterprises, manufacturers, communities, governments, and designers creating new kinds of design programs and product collections. Although based in Toronto, she thinks of her studio as a mobile network looking to combine the strengths of complimentary groups to build new linkages, new cultures and new ideas. She creates new platforms forgovernment funded, multi-year design programs in places likeHaiti, Africa, South America and the Caribbean as well as new products for manufacturers. Her work has been exhibited extensively and received many awards. Recent honours include three ICFF Editors Awards, Wallpaper’s Best of 2010, and, Fast Company’s Design Issue, 2011. With the University of Toronto’s Rotman School of Management, Designworks Centre, she received a Skoll Foundation seed grant to investigate new economic and design modelsforalternative means of organizing creation and production. She is on the advisory board of the IDS in Canada. Patty Johnson was educated at the University of Toronto, Toronto, and, Central Saint Martins College of Art and Design, London.

Jongeward, Carolyn,
Carolyn Jongeward is an independent researcher and consultant on artisan issues and trade support.

Kak, Dr. Krishen K,
Dr. Krishen K Kak has a master's degree (1987) and a doctorate (1990) in cultural anthropology. He joined the IAS in 1968, retired voluntarily in 1999, and now - through the NGO GAYATRI - reads, writes, edits, and teaches in the broad field of crafts, education, ethics and culture.

Kalia, Anjali,
Anjali Kalia is a design graduate from NIFT (National Institute of Fashion Technology), New Delhi. Her graduate collection in 1995 was awarded the CMAI (Clothing Manufacturers Association of India) Award for the Most Creative Collection; she is also a recipient of the Smirnoff Fashion Awards, 1994. Subsequently Anjali worked for Walter Johnson India Pvt. Ltd, followed by a stint of 5 yrs with Rohit Bal. She was also the founder designer for Maya, a label catering to the contemporary Indian women - her fashion shows for this label received critical acclaim. Currently Anjali is working for her own design label ‘Divine Design’ Besides being a consultant to various NGO’s she has conducted a series of Design Development Workshops for traditional artisans to make their products suitable for contemporary markets. Anjali is actively involved with the Tuesday Collective to give voice to the weavers. She is also a trustee of the Pranam Foundation.

Kalra, Jaspal,
Design Academician and Social Entrepreneur, with practice-based PhD degree from NIFT titled ‘Design Education of Chikankari Artisans: A Tool for Social Innovation'. Jaspal Kalra graduated in Fashion Design from NIIFT, Mohali followed by PGCHE and Master of Design (Fashion) from Nottingham Trent University. Alongside he has worked on project brief development and curriculum for Design and Craft based Institutes, developing new forms through zero waste cutting techniques. He has a total of 21 years’ work experience, in professional design spaces of a self-run brand, with ace designers, retail brands and international buyers, and knowledge sharing at various design Institutes. He has provided services as a consultant for staff development and course delivery, and conducted seminars and workshops on craft appreciation. His professional engagements range from teaching workshops at Ashoka University and courses at Somaiya Kala Vidya to serving as an expert panellist for ‘National Entrepreneurship Awards Scheme’, a Member of the Board of Study of Fashion departments of Universities and as a design consultant for projects like Usttad (by NIFT supported by Ministry of Minority Affairs). He has presented in various national and international conferences. He works closely with craft clusters and promotes co-design and design practice sharing with artisans through his brand Sangraha Karigar Atelier. He is a founding member of Kalhath Institute Lucknow’s team to create curriculum and projects, and the Institute’s Executive Director.  

Kanitkar, Dr. Ajit,
Dr. Ajit Kanitkar is Program Officer, Development Finance and Economic Security, Ford Foundation, New Delhi. He has a Ph. D from Pune University (Entrepreneurial response to Liberalization Policies: A case of Dairy Industry in India). He has worked with the Swiss Agency for Development and Cooperation (SDC), and as a Development Consultant in Pune and Delhi. Ajit has published three books on Women Entrepreneurs, Grassroots entrepreneurship and management of cooperatives in India. Ajit is interested in Ensuring access to financial services, promoting appropriate institutional and enterprise models that result in maximum returns to primary producers and change processes in large public systems.

Kapadia, Kavas,
Kavas Kapadia is an Architect –Planner. Dean of Studies and Professor, Dept.of Urban Planning, School of Planning and Architecture, New Delhi. He has worked in Nigeria, Iran and Singapore and been on juries, key committees of Council of Architecture, Indian Institute of town planners, AICTE, DDA, NCR board and such organizations as member and or chairperson. He has extensively presented papers at national and International forums. He is an active member of the Delhi Parsi Anjuman.

Kasturi, Poonam Bir,
Poonam Bir Kasturi, an industrial designer by training, is founder faculty of the Srishti School of Art Design and Technology, Banglore. She founded Industree Crafts Pvt Ltd along with two other partners. She is also the founder-director of PlaynSpeak, a company that designs and manufactures new paradigm products. Poonam has a number of papers on design and craft issues to her credit. During her career she has designed and conducted numerous interactive workshops on issues of design, creativity and craftsmanship.

Kaul, Ekta Khokhar,
Ekta Khokhar Kaul a graduate of the National Institute of Design, Ahmedabad, is currently engaged pursuing her Masters in Textile Design at the School of Textile and Design, Heriot-Watt University, Scotland. She was awarded the Scottish International Scholarship, 2005/06 as well as Charles Wallace Wallace Trust India Scholarship, 2005/06. For her Masters project she is engaged in developing synergies between technology with textile traditions. Prior to embarking upon the Masters programme, Ekta had a successful stint at the industry, working with some of India’s most revered designers.

Kaul, Mayank Mansingh,
Mayank Mansingh Kaul is a New Delhi-based writer and curator with an interest in post-independence histories of textiles, design and fashion in India. A graduate in textile design from the National Institute of Design, Ahmedabad, Kaul has been involved in the past in areas of cultural and creative industries’ policy. Exhibitions that he has curated include The Idea of Fashion (Khoj International Artists’ Residency, New Delhi, 2011), Fracture: Indian Textiles, New Conversations (Devi Art Foundation, Gurgaon, 2015), Gold: The Art of Zari (Bikaner House, New Delhi, 2017), 25 Years of Abraham & Thakore (New Delhi, 2017), Crossroads: Textile Journeys with Ritu Kumar (India Habitat Centre, New Delhi, 2018), New Traditions: Influences & Inspirations in Indian Textiles (Jawahar Kala Kendra, Jaipur, 2018) and Meanings, Metaphor - Handspun and Handwoven in the 21st Century (Chirala, Coimbatore, Bangalore, 2018-19). He is the editor of Take on Art Design (2012), Cloth and India: Towards Recent Histories, 1947-2015 (Marg, 2016), Baluchari: Tradition and Beyond (2016) and Take on Art Fashion, which looks at a century of Indian fashion (2019). Kaul has represented the field of Indian design and textiles in prestigious forums internationally, and has received prominent mentions on lists such as The Most Influential Young Indians at the World Economic Forum Davos (2013 and 2014) and India's Most Influential Creatives in Harpers Bazaar India (2018). Photo Credit: Jasmeet Arora

Kaur, Jasvinder,
Jasvinder Kaur studied textiles at Delhi’s Lady Irwin College. Many years later, it was a fascinating walk down the famous Chicken Street in Kabul, lined with displays of Central Asian textiles, which inspired her to pick up the threads again. Since then, over the course of 30 years, she has been continuously engaged with the subject. This has included consultancy assignments at the Musée d’art et d’histoire and Musée d'ethnographie, both in Geneva, Switzerland, and lecturing as visiting faculty at the National Institute of Fashion Technology, New Delhi. Her articles have featured in international and Indian publications, and she is a regular contributor to The Tribune, Chandigarh—the city she calls home. She is the author of Influences of the British Raj on Attire and Textiles of Punjab  

Kedia, Tulika,
A graduate in English Literature from Delhi University, Tulika Kedia is a passionate collector of indigenous art from the tribal areas across the many Indian states. She is the president of DPS Mihan and DPS Kamptee Nagpur. As a philanthropist, she has supported a large group of artists, collecting their work for more than a decade and has established a commercial gallery, the MUST ART GALLERY, which has a large following of Indian and International buyers. Pursuing her passion, Tulika helped Hervé Perdriolle (a graphic designer, photographer, art director, art critic and curator) published a path-breaking book, on Indian Indigenous art called Indian Contemporary Art: Contemporary, One Word, Several Worlds. She has individually penned down Contemporary Expressions-Art Of The Jogi Family which was launched at the Jaipur Literature festival a couple of years ago. She is the founder of The Kanha Museum of Life and Art at Singinawa Jungle Lodge, Madhya Pradesh

Khaliq, Aruj,
Khaliq, Aruj is an interdisciplinary educationist from Pakistan who has been associated with educational leadership, teaching and curriculum planning since the year 2013. In addition to chairing a department at a renowned private institute, Aruj founded ALIF (Academic Leaders' Innovation Forum) as her passion project to promote 21st Century skills in academia through bespoke solutions. She is a final year M.Phil scholar of Educational Leadership & Management at Beaconhouse National University and in her free time fancies indulging in reading, writing or travelling with her to-go tea mug!