We’re excited to introduce you to the always interesting and insightful Disha Agrawal. We hope you’ll enjoy our conversation with Disha below.

Disha , thanks for joining us, excited to have you contributing your stories and insights. Learning the craft is often a unique journey from every creative – we’d love to hear about your journey and if knowing what you know now, you would have done anything differently to speed up the learning process.

I have been communicating through visuals for as long as I can remember. My first real “project” was a comic I made as a child to convince my family to get me a dog, and it actually worked. From that point on, I became the kid in class who was always drawing, designing posters, creating caricatures, making cards, and decorating banners for school projects. It never felt like work, it felt like the most natural way to express myself.

Growing up in India shaped my eye for detail and storytelling. There is so much color, life, texture, and energy everywhere that you cannot help but absorb it. I learned by observing people and moments around me, and I often brought humor into my drawings because I noticed how easily it connected people. It showed me early on that design is truly about communication and emotion, not just visuals.

Over time, I realized that empathy is the foundation of meaningful design. To solve a problem through visuals, you need to understand what people feel, what they need, and how they experience the world. Only then can a design really speak to someone. Technical skill plays a big role as well, especially in motion and animation, where tools evolve constantly. I try to treat learning like a continuous practice instead of a milestone, because staying curious keeps my work alive.

One obstacle I still navigate is imposter syndrome, especially when I am surrounded by people I admire and look up to. But instead of letting that feeling shrink me, I am learning to acknowledge it and move forward anyway. I am becoming more comfortable sharing my work, taking initiative, and trusting my creative instincts. Saying yes to opportunities like this interview is part of that journey. It reminds me that growth isn’t about feeling ready all the time, it’s about showing up, believing in your voice, and allowing yourself to take up space as you continue to evolve.

Disha , love having you share your insights with us. Before we ask you more questions, maybe you can take a moment to introduce yourself to our readers who might have missed our earlier conversations?

Hi, I am Disha, an animator and storyteller from India. I studied Communication Design at the National Institute of Design, where I focused on frame-by-frame animation. My love for visual storytelling began early by watching cartoons and advertisements on television. That curiosity slowly grew into a deep interest in movement, expression, and emotion, and it led me to explore different mediums to bring ideas to life.

Through those explorations, I discovered my love for motion and how powerful it can be when used with intention. This journey eventually brought me to SCAD, where I am currently pursuing my master’s in Motion Media Design. Here, I have had the chance to learn from creators from different backgrounds and processes, and found a community where conceptual thinking, experimentation, and strong execution work together. Motion media has taught me that every movement, rhythm, and timing choice is purposeful and shapes how ideas are experienced, not just how they are seen.

I work across a range of projects, from branding and PSAs to character-driven short films and title sequences. What sets my work apart is my focus on solving communication challenges through storytelling. For me, it is not only about creating visually striking moments but about crafting visuals that carry meaning and stay with the audience. My goal is to create work that feels thoughtful, human, and emotionally grounded, whether it is a narrative piece or a designed visual system.

Is there mission driving your creative journey?

What drives my creative journey is people. I’ve always been drawn to observing the world around me, how people interact, how they express emotions, and how small moments can hold so much meaning. I often take inspiration from everyday situations, conversations, or experiences that leave an impression on me. It could be something as simple as a passing gesture, a quiet moment of reflection, or an unexpected emotion that surfaces in a familiar place.

I try to translate those observations into my work in a way that feels honest and human. I want my visuals to make people pause and think, to find something that feels familiar even if they can’t quite name it. I love it when someone tells me that my work reminded them of a feeling they once had or a memory they didn’t realize they still carried. For me, that sense of connection is what makes creating meaningful.

At the heart of it, I want my work to be something people can relate to, something that reminds them that their experiences, emotions, and imperfections are shared. That’s what keeps me inspired and helps me see creativity as a bridge between people and stories.

For you, what’s the most rewarding aspect of being a creative?

The most rewarding part of being a creative, especially in animation, is seeing everything come together in the end. After spending so much time planning, sketching, and refining, watching it finally move and take shape is really satisfying. It often turns out even better than what I first imagined, and that transformation makes all the effort worth it.
I also find it very rewarding to see how the audience responds. When people connect with the final piece and it captures what they feel or think in their own way, it means a lot. That mix of personal satisfaction and shared connection is what keeps me motivated to keep creating.

Contact Info:

• Website: https://dishaagrawal.com
• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/dishhahaa
• Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/dishagrawal

Image Credits

Fragments of Home / When I was Older / Decision Making / Lilith Title Sequence, Directed by Disha Agrawal (@dishhahaa) and Winter Royer (@winterroyer)