The Childhood Connection

There are opportunities in life to switch the clock back to our child hood. My friends say they do that watching Youtube re-runs of Sachin Tendulkar batting, while I see my child hood memories with something more permanent which is still actively present. Any guesses? If anyone said Doordarshan, I am buying you a beer, for the simple reason that Doordarshan was all about nostalgia is my umbilical cord to the beautiful 80’s and 90’s on which a beautiful childhood was spent.

A month back, I noticed a post by mygov.in which invited all Indian Nationals to participate in designing a new logo for the flagship Doordarshan Brand.  I was thrilled to be able to think through the logo and see if I can infuse something refreshing into the iconic Doordarshan Logo.

I approached this competition like any other client work I get. I started by researching about competitors and understanding why do we need a redesign. I started putting the concept out on papers. Some made it to the next stage, some made it to the bin and some stayed in the mind. I shared some thoughts with my designer friends to get feedback. Another way was to ask opinion from real users who used to watch Doordarshan and are still watching the channel. After a month of research, I was ready to understand

These are some images of the thought process that I had. I would love to hear from you on what you think. While this ends here, the next section focusses on some improvements that I suggest to the process per se.

Improvement Opportunity area for MyGov.in

Fun Fact- I did not submit my entry to MyGov.in. Why you may ask?

Update : MyGov.in extended the dates for the submission and I was able to submit it. Wooohoo!!!

10 PM Last night. After multiple iterations and layers of butterflies in the stomach, I was ready to post my work at 11 pm.Then when I tried to post it on mygov.in the site wasn't responding properly. I tried waiting and re-submitting but it was not successful. Right on the dot, like Cinderella had a mid-night timeline to get back, the MyGov.in site stopped accepting submissions at midnight. Did any of you also face any problems in submission?

My sense is that Myg ov.in is a not-well thought through site. I think they should consider redesigning their main portal before they conduct any other competitions. It logs you out whenever it feels like. I tried submitting it from 11PM ( I was working till 11PM because I always find the best ideas when the deadline is near.) and it didn't get submitted till 12 and guess what at 12.01AM the submission was closed. How would it feel for a guest who is trying to help you, to be sent out of your house for offering to help? The site is dealing with aspirations and emotions of thousands of people who are volunteering their time and energy to help collaboratively be a part of the country’s national television channel’s vision. I would have appreciated some interest from the organizers to invest more care in managing the site closer to a deadline, or at least have alternate support mechanisms.

Lesson learned: I should have submitted whatever work (even if it is not my best) a day before the deadline for the competitions conducted by mygov.in.

Final Design :

Rationale

Rebranding Doordarshan was like bringing the best childhood memories back in this modern age. During those early days, it was truly a channel that helped in developing our values of life by giving us a true wide exposure in understanding the thinkings of people from every corner of the world.

The prime focus while creating this logo was to not transform and stab the actual feel of the present identity of Doordarshan. It has always made a distinct origin in the mind of its viewers which takes them back to the best nostalgic days of their life. I believe that the finest way of redesigning this logo is to transform it by keeping its authenticity alive. Every identity has to connect with the heart and mind of the people and that's the success of every identity design. If you were to see this logo on a TV screen near you, would you want to watch Doordarshan? What did you think of the logo? I await your thoughts.

Thank you.

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