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At a time when learning India’s classical dance forms often comes with a hefty price tag, a modest institution in Kerala is quietly dismantling that barrier. Nestled in Peringottukara in Thrissur, the Sarvathobhadram Kalakendram has, for the past eight years, been offering free training in performing arts to hundreds of students—many of whom would otherwise never have access to such opportunities.

Established under the aegis of the centuries-old Avanangattil Kalari, the kalakendram is rooted in a simple but powerful philosophy: give more to society than you take from it. “We have always believed in serving society, and the kalakendram was created with that vision,” says A U Raghuraman Panicker, who manages the kalari.

What began as a community-driven initiative has today grown into a thriving cultural hub, training nearly 800 students across disciplines. From Kathakali and Bharatanatyam to Mohiniyattam, Kuchipudi, traditional percussion like Chenda, and even martial arts training in kalari, the institution offers a diverse curriculum—all without charging a fee.

At the helm of its artistic vision is renowned Kathakali exponent Kalanilayam Gopi, who serves as the principal. “We have daily classes from 6am to 6pm, and students are free to choose the art form they wish to pursue,” he explains. The teachers’ remuneration is fully supported by the Avanangattil Kalari, ensuring that financial constraints never become a barrier for aspiring performers.

Beyond instruction, the kalakendram also provides accommodation for male Kathakali students in need, reinforcing its commitment to accessibility. Its performing troupe regularly travels across Kerala, offering students exposure to real-world stages and audiences—an opportunity that often remains out of reach for many learners.

In a cultural landscape where participation in school festivals and competitions like kalolsavams can involve significant expenses—from costumes to training fees—the kalakendram stands out as an equaliser. “There are no barriers here. Students from all communities and religions are welcome,” Panicker emphasises, highlighting the institution’s inclusive ethos.

The journey into the arts begins each year ceremonially during Vidyarambham, when new students are inducted. In keeping with tradition, each child offers a symbolic one-coin dakshina, underscoring the spirit of humility and reverence rather than transaction.

Yet, the kalakendram’s vision extends beyond the arts. Backed by the legacy of the Avanangattil Kalari, it also runs a clinic, promotes organic farming, and engages in charitable initiatives—fostering holistic community development alongside cultural education.

In an age where access to classical arts is increasingly shaped by affordability, the Sarvathobhadram Kalakendram is proving that talent, when nurtured without barriers, can flourish anywhere.

In a clear push toward becoming a comprehensive workplace platform, Canva has announced two new acquisitions just days before its annual Create keynote. The company confirmed it is bringing on board Simtheory and Ortto—both Australian tech firms—to strengthen its capabilities in enterprise workflows and artificial intelligence.

The move signals Canva’s growing ambition to evolve beyond a design-focused tool into a full-scale “work suite” powered by AI. Cliff Obrecht, co-founder and COO of Canva, emphasized this shift, noting that the acquisitions mark a step toward making Canva “the system where work happens end-to-end,” whether users are brainstorming ideas or executing full-scale campaigns.

Although financial details of the deals have not been disclosed, the integration of Simtheory and Ortto’s technologies is expected to roll out to Canva’s massive base of 265 million monthly active users in the coming weeks. These additions are also likely to be highlighted during the upcoming Create keynote, where Canva traditionally unveils major product updates.

The acquisitions build on a series of earlier moves this year, including the addition of MangoAI and Cavalry. Together, these deals reinforce Canva’s expanding AI stack as it competes more directly with industry giants like Adobe and its Creative Cloud suite, as well as emerging creative ecosystems such as Apple’s creator-focused tools.

Simtheory’s integration is particularly significant for Canva’s future roadmap. Its technology enables the creation of “agentic” AI systems—tools capable of executing complex, multi-step workflows using company data and knowledge bases. This means teams could soon deploy AI agents within Canva to automate processes, coordinate tasks, and even switch between different AI models without being locked into one system.

Meanwhile, Ortto brings strengths in data and marketing automation, which will enhance Canva’s ability to manage the entire content lifecycle. From planning and creation to publishing and performance analysis, these capabilities are expected to power Canva’s “Grow” suite, offering businesses a more unified marketing workflow.

Both companies were founded by Chris and Mike Sharkey, who will now join Canva in leadership roles, further strengthening its AI and marketing technology divisions.

These acquisitions reflect Canva’s broader vision of building an integrated ecosystem that connects every stage of work—from initial brief to final output and analysis—supported by AI at every step. As Obrecht noted, the company is only beginning to tap into this potential, hinting that more innovations are on the horizon.

With its continued investments and strategic acquisitions, Canva is positioning itself not just as a design tool but as a central hub for productivity, creativity, and intelligent automation in the modern workplace.

India is not only cementing its status as a global technology and innovation center, but its creative economy is also undergoing a major change. Design education is becoming a main lever for such change, with institutions like Design India Collective reinventing the ways students are trained for design careers with mentorship-driven, industry-oriented learning.

A bigger vision: India as a world design capital

The Indian design heritage - from timeless architecture and crafts to recent digital innovations - gives the country a great base from which to grow. As the need for skills like user experience, design thinking and creative problem solving grows, the emphasis is moving from purely theoretical knowledge to practical, hands-on learning.

Design India Collective is carving out a niche for itself in the changing scenario and has set its sights on being a part of the grander dream of making India a global design capital. The school, by mixing the age-old artistry with new techniques, is developing itself in line with the requirements of an ever-growing design industry.

What sets the institute apart is its emphasis on experiential learning. Students are exposed to real-world design practices through industry expert sessions, workshops, exhibitions, and hands-on studio projects.

From product design to visual communication, the curriculum spans multiple disciplines, helping students build portfolios that reflect both creativity and practical application—key factors in competitive admissions.

‘85 Portfolio Possibilities’: A structured edge

A standout feature of the institute is its “85 Portfolio Possibilities Framework,” designed to help students explore diverse design domains while building strong, differentiated portfolios. This approach allows students to identify their creative strengths and stand out in highly competitive selection processes.

Results and expansion plans

Students have gained admission to top design colleges in india and abroad, frequently with scholarships. The focus stays on long-term career readiness, not quick exam results.

Genius Nestlings began in 2009 and changed its name to design India Collective in 2023. The new model centers on design education. Next steps include growing into Tier 2 and tier 3 cities, launching an online platform, and working with industry and universities across the country.

Designing for impact

As India's innovation system expands, design is no longer just a career path - it's a tool for real-world solutions. Design India Collective supports ethical, human-centered design thinking.

When creativity and problem-solving matter more than rote learning, these efforts show how education is shifting. Students aren't just entering industries, they're building them from within.

The School of design at MIT Institute of design has launched D'KODE 2026 with a two-day Typography Summit, March 28 - 29 - bringing together leading voices from India and abroad to explore the evolving role of typography in design, communication, and digital interfaces.

Leading the discussions are Gerri Canonico, a US-based typographer, Sarang Kulkarni who is from India and noopur Datye, a digital font specialist. The main topics of conversation are variable fonts, AI- type design and inclusive typography - reshaping visual messaging with the help of technology.

Besides that, workshops on glyphs and FontForge enable the participants to create fonts. Moreover, the course covers branding and UI/UX scenarios from the real world. As a matter of fact, design sprints are the live sessions where people get the chance to use the new typefaces in practice. On the other hand, the exhibitions display experimental works along with other side features.

By the way, typography has been impacted heavily by the national Education Policy 2020. Design colleges are giving great importance to interdisciplinary training and technological skills. What used to be a somewhat insignificant skill is now a major factor in global digital markets.

Along with D'KODE 2026, we see how AI and cross-cultural interaction are making new skills necessary. Typography is the medium through which we read, feel and tell stories. Apart from appearance, it is about providing access, giving a great experience, and communicating effectively, which are the needs of today's creative world.

With the National Education Policy (NEP) setting the main theme of overall educational reforms and also reforms in professional courses such as engineering and pharmacy, the Council of Architecture (CoA) has come up with major changes in the architecture curriculum.

These revised regulations will be operative from the academic session 202627 and will bring major alterations to the structure of the Bachelor of Architecture programme.

According to sources, CoA usually reviews and revises the academic framework after the completion of a full cycle of 10 semesters. After the policy of 2020 came into effect, CoA brought out a revised framework focusing more on modern technology, practical exposure, and skill-based learning.

The new program structure, which is a five-year programme spread over ten semesters, will demand students to acquire a total of 276 credits for completion. To meet this, students will have to earn between 26 and 30 credits every semester. Among the most significant changes introduced is the passing criteria. Students will be mandated to obtain at least 50 percent marks in each component of every subject to pass. Previously, the passing criteria were different for various subjects, but the new rule aims at standardizing the evaluation system.

Keeping up with the rapid changes in technology, the updated syllabus will offer a separate course in Artificial Intelligence (AI). This will become a mandatory subject for all architecture students, reflecting the dependence of design and planning on digitally-enabled tools.

The entire ninth semester will be devoted to internship or hands-on training, a noteworthy piece of the overhaul, helping students learn from work situations. Besides engaging in hands-on training, students finishing the program will be tasked to do a Capstone Project where they will showcase a thoroughly researched and well thought out design.

Moreover, students will no longer write two separate question papers but only one that carries 50 marks. These changes are likely to help in making architecture a more hands-on discipline and being in line with international norms.

Team Nexus AI from Sona College of Technology, Salem, that developed an artificial intelligence-based platform that simplifies industrial PLC programming, won the Gold Cup at the Mitsubishi Electric Cup - 6th Edition (2026) among 300 entries.

The contest sought participating teams to design fully functional automation solutions using Mitsubishi Electric Factory Automation technologies aligned with its e-F@ctory concept.

AI Platform for Industrial Automation

Team Nexus AI-led by Ms Tharanika K, and comprising BTech IIIrd year batchmates Ms Tharana A S, Mr Vijay B and Mr Seralathan R-worked on "Simplifying Industrial PLC Programming using Artificial Intelligence." The team developed a system that allows users to describe machine control logic in natural language, which is then automatically converted into Structured Text code-a modern alternative to conventional ladder logic programming.

The team was selected from nearly 300 national entries in the Mitsubishi Electric competition and underwent multiple stages of technical evaluation supported by Mitsubishi Electric mentors and trainers.

Over months of development, the students built a robust AI platform capable of generating executable control programs for Mitsubishi Electric IQ-F (FX5U) PLCs. The innovation was validated through a fully operational Automated Dip Dyeing Machine, powered entirely by AI-generated control code produced by the Nexus AI platform and executed using Mitsubishi Electric industrial automation hardware including PLCs, HMIs, servo motors and FA components.

At the final round held at the MIT Pune campus, the system underwent intensive evaluation by an eight-member jury comprising automation programmers, ladder-logic specialists and Mitsubishi Electric R&D engineers. The jury examined the platform's architecture, logic integrity, safety framework and scalability. Senior leadership, including Atsushi Takase, Managing Director of Mitsubishi Electric India, had in- depth discussions with the team and conveyed their keenness for possible partnership in the future.

After going through nearly 150 days of rigorous product development along with their studies, Team Nexus AI was announced the winner of the Gold Cup and they received a cash prize of Rs.1 00 000.

Expressing his pleasure to the students, Takase said, "I am very happy to see Team Nexus AI winning the competition. The team has successfully shown not only excellent technical skills but also creativity and innovative thinking elements throughout the competition."

The winning team Nexus AI will be the face of Mitsubishi Electric India at the Global Mitsubishi Electric Factory Automation (MECA) Competition to be held in September 2026.

Praising the team, Chocko Valliappa, Vice Chairman, Sona College of Technology said, "Our faculty's research inclination is creating a path of innovation grounded on strong fundamental knowledge." This is the third national industry competition win by Sona student teams in recent months - after Capgemini and Google Gemini - reflecting the focused mentoring ecosystem at the institution."

The team acknowledged the guidance of its faculty mentor Dr. D. Prasad, the support of a seven-member backend peer group, and the encouragement received from Sona's EEE alumni and institutional leadership.

It may be recalled that Team Nexus AI team member Vijay B had won the Rs 2.5 lakh Student Champion Award in the Capgemini Engineering Brand Quest 2025 beating

2,50,000 competitors from engineering and management institutions.