Team Goemkarponn
PANAJI: The JD Design Awards 2025 lit up the Panjim Gymkhana with a vibrant showcase of creativity, innovation, and purposeful design. Organized by the JD School of Design, powered by JD Institute of Fashion Technology, the event celebrated the exceptional talent of final-year students while bringing together Goa’s creative and cultural elite.
This year’s theme invited audiences to pause and reflect on the deeper narratives of identity, heritage, and sustainability. The fashion runway featured 14 evocative collections, each woven with personal stories and cultural expression. Parallelly, an impressive interior design exhibition highlighted spatial concepts rooted in biophilic design, cultural preservation, and intentional living.
Among the top honours in interior design, Naomi Anna Cardozo won Best Design of the Year for her project Scentorium: Perfume Museum, while Maegan Cressie D’Costa was awarded Best Concept of the Year for Workspace in Interior. Both projects demonstrated an exceptional blend of storytelling and future-forward thinking.
Mr. Nealesh Dalal, Founder of JD School of Design, praised the emerging designers, saying, “These young designers are the storytellers of tomorrow. Their work goes beyond style—it speaks of identity, values, and the power of purposeful design.”
In the fashion category, several collections stood out for their originality and relevance. Callista Pereira’s Threads of Legacy received the Conscious Craft Award, while Taysha Althea Pereira’s The Alchemy of Chaos won the Stitch and Form Award. Ayushka Kote’s Ornate Solace earned the Beyond Gender Collection Award, and Sarveksha Mansingh Rane’s Sculpted Senses was honoured with the Formless Design Award. Mahek Shaikh’s Full Moon Party took home the Unconventional Avant-Garde Award, and Sanjana Gurav’s Aeternum was named Best Pret-a-Porter Designer. Janice Marissa Botelho’s Aurora Terra won the Experimental Textile Award, while Victorian Era Reimagined by Wekhrolou Kapfo earned the Heritage Reborn Award. Mehal Ramchandra Parab’s Divine Aura was recognised with the coveted Golden Needle Award.
The event was graced by special guests including MLA Vijay Sardesai, artist Subodh Kerkar, tech innovator Manharish Salelkar, fashion entrepreneur Praful Makwana, Dr. Niyan Marchon from the Goa State Higher Education Council, and Mr. Yogesh Dalal, Trustee of JD Educational Trust.
Supported by key partners like The House of Samsara, Nirvana, Big Banyan, Roulette, Niko Photoworld, and The Style World, the JD Design Awards 2025 was hailed as a landmark celebration of contemporary Indian design. More than just a fashion event, it stood as a powerful statement—that design in India is evolving to be more mindful, meaningful, and deeply rooted in cultural consciousness.
