Assignment 3: Re-designing a lunch box (the Indian dabba).

Group members:

Anchana

Aishwarya

Muttu, from DRISHYA

Shruti &

me, Sidharta

Target consumers: The middle-class office going man and his household.

The present dabba design has been the same for quite a while now.

Ease of transport and usage has significantly outwaved its flaws.

(Image courtesy - Vinodsteel.com)

A Dabbawala with the dabbas he is scheduled to deliver.

(Image courtesy - Wikimedia.org)

Shortcomings of the traditional dabba :

1. The cylindrical construction is not the best for transportation

2. The lock mechanism holding the dabbas together wear out with usage.

3. Considerable spillage occurs due to the shape of the dabba compartments and its arrangement while eating.

4. Space is wasted during storage of the dabba or when there is not as much food present.

What we came up with - Process and ideas.

We began our discussion and concept sketches during recess. Having dabbas from our respective mess really helped in visualizing

what we wanted to improve upon. Communication was not an issue as Anchana spoke fluent Tamil and so did Muttu.

Ideas :

1. The Stackable Plate Dabba.

To begin with, the stackable factor of the dabba is retained while we changed its form from a cylinder to a vertical cuboid.

This helps in transportation as the dabbas fit snugly.

The walls of each compartment has magnetic points which lets the different compartments come together as one.

The compartment separators too fit magnetically to form a plate to eat out of.

It comes with an insulated cover to keep the food hot.

The magnetic points may however attract unwanted objects, specially in an office environment.

2. Crushable lunch box

This was the idea we finally settled on. The crushable dabba can be easily stored when not in use.

A screw lock system allows you to attach as many compartments as you want.

An easy twist and lock feature greatly reduces torsional force.

Cleaning might be a minor issue due to the angular nature of the form.

Narayanpura

Life is made up of a series of simultaneous phases of existence. For the most of life, the passing of time and maturity of being come from merely being alive so as to physically make it through these phases one by one and coming out older and supposedly wiser on the other end. On the other hand we can choose to dive into the epicenter of experiences and come out gasping for breath, but having gained salvation.

Going to Narayanpura was on the border line of these two choices. Going anywhere (except a steakhouse) at seven-thirty in the morning is a pain. Narayanpura wasn't very looked forward to because of the same apparent reason. We left home at seven thirty. We couldn't find Manoj and felt rather confused as to where he could be. The dreaded early morning bus commute miraculously disappeared when Aditi spotted her car on the road.

We reached Narayanpura at about eight.

The place was situated right beyond a granite quarry. It was clean enough. Eucalyptus, mango and palm trees along with some other couple of trees trying to make it through an identity crisis dotted the terrain. The people were rather open and accepted us as guests. We spoke to a few people there and through them we could visualize the livelihood of the entire village. The residents were all of the Kumhar caste. Everyone of this caste is a potter. They have an efficient 'committee' system where finances are regulated by the village head. Through a 'chit system' a certain amount is collected by the head. This amount is reserved for paying off debts and interest from loans. People live pretty happily, although money can be an issue at times. We were allowed to learn a little pottery and we made quite a few clay things.

The experience was insanely nice. There wasn't a single moment which I regretted. I'm going to go back soon. I want the clay things I made.