In recent decades the importance of ‘Design’ has grown manifold and it has become a crucial influencer for innovation and progress globally. Design is now an inseparable aspect affecting industries that range from manufacturing to construction to technology to creative and cultural industries. This has remarkably increased the demand for designers in various fields. Design education in India also is thus poised for a quantum leap with establishment of numerous higher education design institutes in response to growing demand of industry professionals. The recent changes in Indian education policy have also opened the door for foreign universities to establish design institutes across the nation. This paper traces the evolution of design education in India, its future prospects and challenges with a view to provide a comprehensive picture of design education in India. It investigates the rapid changes in the Indian design education landscape over the last few decades. The study also reflects on the future of design education from the perspective of an emerging economy. The research design consists of an exhaustive review of extant literature and semi-structured interviews with resource persons from industry and academia. The findings discussed could have implications for educationists, design educators and serve as a valuable database for all those concerned with design education in India such as persons and organizations planning to open design institutes or introducing design courses in India. The findings reflected that Indian design education is at a very exciting juncture though there remain some significant challenges for it such as accessibility to design education, lack of qualified faculty, unmet industry demands, outdated curricula, and increasing absence of indigenous practices and cultural heritage in design education unique to India among other issues which can be resolved with concerted efforts.