Category: NIFT B.Des

1. Hi How’s your day going on?

Vartika- I am having a pretty normal day the one which you have in lockdown.

2. Congrats for securing AIR 2 in NIFT 2020. So how are you feeling after scoring such a good rank?

Vartika- Thank you so much I am very thrilled but and at the same time shocked as I didn’t expect such a good rank. But I am very happy about it.

3. So Vartika talking about this NIFT 2020 Exam how was the paper was it easy, difficult lengthy?

Vartika- It was CAT paper the creative ability test paper was lengthy but that depends upon how much you want to do because if you want to color and use all the techniques it will be a time consuming process but general ability test paper was completed within the allotted time and the time allotted was enough .If we talk about the difficulty level, I found some parts difficult but all in all the paper was not easy but was not that difficult too.

4. Some student came up saying that CAT was really lengthy.

Vartika- Yes, they did not specify generally in the questions they specify that don’t color it or color it but this time it was not specified in the questions so our first approach was to colour them all, so it got the paper lengthy.

5. Coming up to the creativity section, so were you good at creativity from the start or you nurtured it?

Vartika- I was able to copy things like when I saw some artists work I was able to copy it to some extent like 50-60% but I didn’t have my own ideas and I was not aware of the technique and color that should be used together. That’s where Pahal comes in what I had in mind I was not able to draw from memory or whatever I wanted to draw I always needed a reference that’s what they taught me that how to do that.

6. Now if we talk about the GAT section, what subjects or section were time consuming?

Vartika- Most time consuming one would definitely be English, the comprehension were really tough I would say because you know as a ICSE student we are expected to be very good English but it was very tough because I have to read it all again and again to mark the words and studied a lot because sir told me that English is very high level but I did not expected to be like this as it was time consuming too but that increased my marks I was able to attempt all the comprehensions and most of them were right but it took a lot of time doing comprehensions. The maths sections, it takes time because you have to do the calculation but it was not very hard if you have studied nicely in 10th and you remember the tricks you would be able to do it easily.

7. What about the GK section? How did you prepare for GK?

Vartika- Sir took a GK class every week and gave us a lot of notes and pdfs were there with us I thoroughly went through then I tried to remember everything that sir gave us but I am not good in general knowledge things and don’t read the newspaper but sir told me do so I did. The fashion related GK had some part but static GK came more this time about history of India & usual things which were going on. Some questions were easy but some questions I have not heard about it ever. We should pay more attention so the things for sure like in Maths, English, reasoning we can still predict what can come but in GK one is not sure what can come.

8. Through that coming to the negative marking which was implemented this year how did you cope up with it?

Vartika- I first did all the questions which I was sure that I will get them correct and after that I attempt the questions which I was doubtful about. Sir told me to attempt questions in a way that even if I suffer with negative marking it is balanced from the marks you get from the questions which were correct or through guess work guess in a way that it does not cost you anything and it favors you so I did the questions in a way that even I got the negative marking it did not affect me to that extent because I was not going to attempt those questions any way. So I actually got favour from it.

9. So, students should attempt only those questions which they know are 100% correct?

Vartika- First of all, we should attempt questions about which they are 100% sure about so because we don’t want to miss anything at least one is able to complete what they know. I was able to attempt everything but what you are good at If you implement it, It will help you so the teachers were amazing as they always helped us and If I was not able to attend the classes on weekend then he used to change slots, so the teachers were one who helped me manage it all.

10. Talking about the school studies the school studied are on subjective side and the entrance exam is conceptual based so how did Pahal helped you in seeking the level of success?

Vartika- I believe that in whatever stream you are it will benefit you in some way or the other like Arts students had leverage over me in the creative section but then I had leverage over them in the aptitude part because I know how things work because of my science background. So, Pahal motivated me to take advantage of being a science student by showing them that how things will work .so that actually helped me.

11. Great to hear that! What tips and suggestions you would like to give to the NIFT aspirants so that they can score well?

Vartika- Firstly, I feel that students take NIFT lightly thinking that if we study for one or two months, we can do it but it’s not like that! One has to study from the very beginning because if you thing you can cover all the creative part in a month you are wrong. It can take a lifetime as there is so much to the theories and practical. So you should practice from very beginning and you should create a schedule like sometimes, 12th Pursuing find it hard to take out time. I used to reduce the sleep time and study in the night woke up early. Don’t forget to rest I make a personal time table that I have to complete the topics. To be honest, we had 8 months to prepare, in which one can cover the syllabus provided. Some students complain that they are not good at drawing and I was that student but what matters the most is how creative you are and how you are able to present it. Even if you are good in drawing and not able convey exactly what you wanted to write there it is on your mind as examiner will also see whatever you are able to convey the thought and creativity. My only advice is that be focused don’t think that it is a fashion institute you will be able to get there easily. Ask from the rank holders that how much they have to work hard for! If you work hard you will get it!

12. Coming to the end of the session Vartika, you shared really good tips with the aspirants so I want to ask again the magical tips you want to give to the aspirants so that they can crack NIFT with a rank?

Vartika- First, it would be to join Pahal because they are actually are the ones who are behind it all. I was not filling up the form for NIFT but sir asked to fill it so I filled it and here I am. I will suggest that do comprehensions a lot try to increase the vocabulary as the English which comes in the paper is not like the usual English which we speak we can all speak English and good at it but you need to be extra good in English because in fashion line English will be used to communicate the most & I am going for fashion communication and my line is only communication so they take into consideration your English very much. I can say half of the GAT paper consisted of English and holds the maximum marks. Even if you are not very good at it they don’t ask you words out of the universe but if you read books as I love reading books. Pick up simple books that have easy language as sometimes in CAT also they ask you to write a paragraph this time also they asked you to fill the details and write what you want to convey so I wrote every sort of English I have in me. So, I feel one must work every day. Secondly, improve your English and thirdly, even if you are not good at art try to enhance your creative mind, I did that through teachers. There were workshops of creative abilities and they ask us to watch movies that will help us. I followed a lots of artist pages on Instagram and see how they work. Don’t follow the artist who just creative something by just seeing rather follow those who create abnormal things which you don’t usually see and invokes the feelings inside like I never thought like that. The art pages will help you looking at things in different way. Expand your creative mind as much as you can and that’s the easiest thing you can do among all the things like you can watch movies, you can read books or draw as every design aspirant loves to draw as that’s a necessity in an aspirant. Go through the past papers you will know what you will know what I am talking about because the English you have to be very good at it like if they say you should know what they mean, the antonyms, synonyms etc. One more thing, colour theory each colour conveys something and if you know the color theory I believe you will be able to attempt the question at least half of the questions brilliantly because if you know the colors you will create something which are appealing to the eyes and that what I feel examiner look for, As this year among the questions, color questions went good than the shading questions because color doesn’t smudge and shading smudges and it looks very untidy. I tried making it tidy and first impression should be extraordinary to get a good rank.

13. Thank you so much Vartika wish you all the best for your career.

Vartika- Thank you mam.