About the Community
What is Viyam Education?
Viyam Education is a New Age Career Coach and Career & Admission Coach focused on empowering students, schools and educators with future-ready opportunities. We provide guidance in 21st Century Skills, Design & Liberal Arts, AI Education, Entrance Exams, Career & Admission Guidance, and Global Education in India & Abroad. Through our Art Educators Connect (AEC) initiative, we connect and empower educators with industry and academic opportunities. Our mission is to Connect, Educate and Engage stakeholders in education and help students make informed career decisions for a rapidly evolving global future.
ART Educator Connect
A platform built for educators who want to collaborate
ART Educator Connect is structured as a professional network where educators can exchange ideas, access opportunities, build partnerships and contribute to initiatives that create measurable academic and community impact.
Instead of working in isolation, members become part of an ecosystem where teaching experience, institutional knowledge, new tools and collaborative projects can move more efficiently across the network.
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UPCOMING ACTIVITIES & FESTS
Empowering students and creators through vibrant inter-school competitions, interactive showcases, and creative platforms.
Inter-School Fest
EUPHORIA
Cultural & Creative Fest
Fashion DesignClay SculptureDocumentaryPaintingsDance
20 Schools • 500+ Participants
Knowledge & Updates
View All BlogsLatest Blogs
Career Takeoff in Space Science: Building a Career in the Space and Drone Industry
Space technology, satellite applications, drones and private space companies are creating exciting new career opportunities in India. From aerospace engineering and rocket propulsion to data analytics, space law, business and AI, students from both technical and non-technical backgrounds can build careers in this rapidly expanding sector.
Read Blog →Ready to participate?
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KEYPURPOSE OFAEC
Incubation & Start-up Support
Encourage educator-led ideas through collaboration, guidance, visibility and access to a professional network.
Student-Centric Impact
Translate educator collaboration into better learning experiences, career readiness and stronger student outcomes.
Recognition & Advocacy
Highlight educator achievements and create a stronger collective voice for education-led initiatives.
Resource & Knowledge Exchange
Promote sharing of tools, practical resources, frameworks, opportunities and proven learning practices.
Cultural & Creative Exchange
Support interdisciplinary collaboration, creativity and diverse education experiences through community activity.
MR. VIJAY THAKUR
Vijay Thakur is the Founder of Art Educators Connect, an edupreneurial platform dedicated to empowering art and design educators and shaping the next generation of creative careers. With over 13 years of experience in art and design education, Vijay has built a reputation as a New-Age Career Mentor, helping students and professionals navigate emerging opportunities in the creative economy.
Before founding Art Educators Connect, Vijay spent more than 7 years in leadership roles across marketing, sales, and distribution at leading multinational corporations. This blend of corporate strategy experience and deep-rooted passion for art education gives him a unique vantage point — one where business acumen meets creative vision.
Vijay holds a Master's degree in Management and brings a strategic, scalable approach to everything he builds. Through Art Educators Connect, he is driven by a mission to empower art educators, nurture creative futures, and bring structure, strategy, and purpose to the wider creative ecosystem.
As a Core Initiator, Vijay continues to champion the growth of art education as a viable, thriving career path — bridging the gap between traditional creative training and the demands of a modern, design-driven world.
ADVISORY MEMBERS
MR Sasi Gopal Menon
A graduate in Industrial Design from the National Institute of Design, Ahmedabad, Sasi Gopal Menon has spent over 25 years as both a design practitioner and educator. He has built and led design programmes — spanning Design Thinking, Design Research, and Design Strategy — at institutions including Pearl Academy, GD Goenka University, and Apeejay Stya University. He serves on the Board of Studies at NID (Madhya Pradesh), Manav Rachna Institute of Design, and Rishihood University, and has contributed to the CII National Committee on Design. He currently leads as Chief Design Officer at Infinity Lifespaces, overseeing architecture and interior design.
MR Kartik Mahajan
Kartik Mahajan is an award-winning animator, filmmaker, and illustrator from Uttarakhand, India, and a graduate of the National Institute of Design. He is the founder of IBK Productions, a creative studio that has collaborated with brands including Google, Jio Cinema, Royal Enfield, and Nykaa. His original animated short film Phool Dei has been selected and awarded at 75+ international film festivals with 250+ global screenings, earning honors like India Gold at Digicon Asia (Tokyo) and the Ministry of Information & Broadcasting's Award of Excellence for Best Director. His work centers on culturally rooted storytelling through animation and character design.
MR Rahul Sah
Rahul Sah is a communications and content strategy professional with close to two decades of experience across media, technology, and brand storytelling. He brings deep expertise in strategic communications and content-led brand building, having worked extensively with enterprise and consumer technology ecosystems. With a strong foundation in information technology and digital platforms, Rahul also oversees web and online presence, ensuring content integrity, discoverability, and engagement across channels. His ability to blend storytelling with technology enables the organisation to build a strong, future-ready digital identity while amplifying its mission of creativity, leadership, and innovation.
EXECUTIVE & FOUNDING MEMBERS
The founding members are the initiators of Art Educators Connect. They define the vision, values, and purpose of the collective and act as long-term guides as the community grows. Our founding and executive members represent a balanced blend of seasoned educators and young professionals, creating a dynamic, forward-looking art education community.
MR. Subodh Kumar
Mr Subodh Kumar is a Fine Arts professional trained in Chandigarh, with academic qualifications including an M.Com and ICWAI. With 28 years of rich teaching experience, [he/she] has nurtured creative thinking and artistic excellence across generations of learners. [Name] actively participated in the National Science Exhibition, Delhi (2000), and has conducted and participated in numerous painting workshops, contributing significantly to experiential, interdisciplinary art education. This blend of a strong academic foundation and decades of hands-on creative teaching reflects a lasting commitment to nurturing artistic talent and innovative pedagogy in the field of fine arts.
MR KM Joseph
Born in Kerala K.M.Joseph developed a passion for art and creative concept of recycled material in various art forms.A teacher of profound knowledge and experience of 35 years with M.A.BEd.nurturing young children in creative thinking and artistic excellence.Actively participated in painting workshops and exhibitions.
MR Satinder Pal Singh
Satender Pal Singh is a highly experienced artist and art educator with over 23 years of teaching experience in Painting, Fine Art, and Design. He holds a Master in Fine Art, a Five Year Diploma in Fine Art, an IGD Certificate from Mumbai, and a Certificate in Geometrical Design. Known for his dedication to art education, he has guided students to national-level excellence — notably mentoring a student who received the National Award, presented by the Honourable President of India. He has also actively promoted fine arts through annual exhibitions organised in Rishikesh, Dehradun, and Haridwar.
MR Mahipal Chaudhary
Mahipal Chaudhary is a visual and studio art educator with over a decade of teaching experience, currently serving as PGT Art at The Wisdom Global School, Haridwar, following seven years as Assistant Professor at Minerva Institute of Management & Technology, Dehradun. He holds an M.A. and B.A. in Drawing & Painting from DAV PG College, Dehradun. His achievements include recognition for the Namami Gange Project and Saharanpur Police Line wall art renovation, along with participation in national art exhibitions and seminars. He specializes in conceptual art, sculpture, painting, and exhibition management, with a strong focus on mentorship and creative teaching.
MS. Sunita Bhati
Sunita Bhati is a highly dedicated Art Educator and Fine Artist with over 30 years of teaching experience in visual arts. She has served in the Art Department at Delhi Public School, Ranipur, Haridwar since 1993, teaching fine arts across grade levels, developing structured curricula, and guiding students in drawing, painting, and creative techniques. She is actively involved in the art community, having participated in multiple exhibitions in Haridwar and Delhi showcasing original artworks. Sunita holds a Master of Arts in Fine Arts from Nanak Chand College, Meerut (Chaudhary Charan Singh University), and is fluent in Hindi and English.
MS. Aditi Rastogi
Aditi Rastogi is a multidisciplinary artist and storyteller from Ranikhet, Uttarakhand, currently pursuing a Bachelor of Fine Arts in Painting at Sir J.J. School of Art, Mumbai. Her creative practice spans visual art, poetry, photography, and music, through which she explores themes of fragility, touch, and the deep connections between humans, animals, and the land. Alongside her studio practice, she aims to build an art brand rooted in personal narrative and material sensitivity. She has conducted multiple art workshops and has exhibited her works in several group exhibitions, reflecting an active engagement with both community-based learning and contemporary art spaces.
MR. Utsav Khadka
Utsav Khadka is an award-winning Industrial Designer and 3D Visualization specialist from Dehradun, Uttarakhand, and a graduate of the University of the Arts London. His future-forward, emotionally resonant design work has earned recognition from platforms including the BW Businessworld Design Award and India's Best Design Award, among other national and international honours. Guided by simplicity, inclusivity, sustainability, and social impact, Utsav views design as a tool for meaningful change, exploring future materials and human-centred thinking to craft experiences that go beyond function. Storytelling and research anchor his practice, ensuring every outcome is clear, empathetic, and built for long-term relevance.
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