VizChitra 2025

The What

Side projects keep me happy. I couldn’t really imagine learning without them, and I think I’ve genuinely learnt the most about data, programming, and visualization while tinkering away on something that just caught my interest. This talk is about embracing that slightly chaotic, but very rewarding, world of side projects as a personal playground for learning. I want to share a little bit of my own journey so far, focusing on how these projects have helped me pick up skills in programming and data viz (the messy middle bits included, not just the shiny end results). I’ll talk about how to approach finding ideas, trying to structure the work, making time when life gets busy, and figuring out ways to actually learn and see progress.

To show this, I’ll walk through a few examples of projects I’ve worked on and show how each one nudged me to learn a specific new tool or technique; from data collection and analysis (like for Votes in a Name) to mapping (like BLR Water Log) and web development. This whole approach also connects with something I’m actively thinking about and aiming for: the idea of becoming more ‘T-shaped’. I find the concept of building a broad base of knowledge while also diving deeper into specific areas that really excite me quite compelling, and side projects feel like a very natural way to explore that path.

The Why

Essentially, my argument is:

1. The most valuable learning often happens when you’re trying to solve problems you’ve set for yourself. And from what I’ve found, there’s definitely ways to structure a side project to maximize learning.
2. Messing around with these projects is a direct way to get your hands dirty with specific, practical data skills. I’ll showcase a variety of these.

The Who

This is for anyone curious about how one goes about learning practical skills like programming or data visualization through hands-on projects, especially fellow students, recent graduates, or early-career folks. If you’re interested in self-directed learning for yourself, or just want to see how someone else is navigating the process of learning by doing, this talk is for you.

Bio

My name is Aman Bhargava, and I am a data visualization developer at Revisual Labs. I studied Human-Computer Interaction at Srishti Institute of Art, Design and Technology, where I graduated from in 2023. I interned with the Reuters Graphics team in 2022, where I worked on charts and visuals for different kinds of stories. Some bylines also in Unearthed (Greenpeace) and Rest of World. My other interests lie in cities and urban development, history, open-source software, and cartography.

My work is available here on my website. I also work on Diagram Chasing.

Format

Standard Talk: 30 minutes (25 min presentation + 5 min Q&A)