DIPENDRA BAONI
Promoter & Co-Founder
Dipendra Baoni is a designer, systems thinker, and educator and alumnus of NID,A. His practice lives at the intersection of heritage, design ethics, and conscious innovation. With a lineage rooted in generations of artists and a background in product & transportation design, his journey has never followed convention—it has always followed questions.
Through his studio Lemon Design, founded in 2000, Dipendra explored design as a tool for transformation across industries and cultures. As the studio grew, so did his concern with the systemic role of design in shaping social behaviour, culture, and consumption. He began to ask: can design repair what it often helps break?
This inquiry led to the creation of DIVE, a methodology built passionately on Intent, Purpose and Impact, and the launch of "Emerging Scenarios," a speculative design course at NID, where Dipendra returned as visiting faculty in 2017. His practice increasingly shifted beyond form-making to system-shaping—anchored in empathy, responsibility, and the quiet power of intentionally well-crafted brands & things.
The Humane Collective emerged from this shift. Born from years of living & working with artisans in NE & Himalayas, natural materials, and regenerative processes, it reflects a slower, more deliberate way of living. What began as a quiet exploration during the early days of the pandemic soon evolved into a tangible vision—bringing together craft, community, and conscious design under one roof. Every piece is a result of deep listening and collaboration, shaped by indigenous knowledge systems and a commitment to a sustainable advancement.
For Dipendra, design is a means to contribute - to culture, to communities, and to a more balanced and harmonious future. The Humane Collective is his response to the current times.
A quiet rebellion against the speed and sameness of modern consumption.
A vision for design that replenishes rather than reduces. And a call to remember that beauty made with care, can still change the world.
SHIVANI THAKUR
Artisan partner & Co-Founder
Shivani Thakur is a social entrepreneur whose work is defined by community, and care. With over two decades of experience working with indigenous artisans and natural materials, she brings deep-rooted wisdom and lived knowledge to The Humane Collective’s vision of mindful making.
Born into a family that helped establish and run one of India’s largest handloom cooperatives—Bhuttico—Shivani’s journey in craft was shaped by the rhythms of the loom and the resilience of women. As the founder of The Woolknitters, she has worked closely with over 250 women knitters, 200 artisans, and 1500 weaving families across the Himalayan belt, building livelihood networks grounded in dignity, skill, and self-reliance.
Her work extends beyond enterprise. In partnership with Royal Enfield’s social mission, Shivani leads initiatives to upskill and train artisan communities across Himachal Pradesh, ensuring that traditional knowledge systems not only survive but evolve with time.
At The Humane Collective, Shivani anchors the artisan collaborations—bringing together materials, makers, and methods in ways that are regenerative and real. Her quiet leadership continues to shape a future where design uplifts, empowers, and gives back to the hands that sustain it.
