Google's Doodle team head Ryan Germick talks about his love for India's hand painted signs & Satyajit Ray

The fruit games doodles for Rio Olympics are still fresh in most of our minds -bananas racing strawberries even as papayas beat kiwis in badminton. Ryan Germick, the 36-year-old head of Google's Doodle team in Mountview California, says the brief was to bring a smile to every user's face. In India to announce a doodling competition for children as well as attend a wedding in Kerala, Germick spoke to Shobita Dhar about why he loves Uncle Pai and Satyajit Ray.

You have one of the coolest jobs in the world. How did you become a Google doodler? And what's the best part about the job?
There's no college major for doodling, so the path my was a bit unconventional and very lucky. I've always been interested in both art and storytelling, so I took up creative writing and illustration in college at New York. During a junior year abroad in India I taught myself how to make webpages and was then able to pay my way through school as a web designer. When I moved to California, I applied to Google on a lark. Turns out my unusual combination of skills was a good fit. What I like the most about my job is working with my team to give technology a human touch.

Over the years, the doodles have become more diverse -more women, more people of colour. Was that a conscious effort?
Yes, we believe in creating doodles that make everyone feel welcome. After all -as our CEO Sundar Pichai often says -Google is for everyone. That's why we're always trying different styles, inspired by people from all walks of life, and celebrating topics from all around the world.

This year the Google Doodle turned 18. How has it changed over the years and what's the next technical leap?
Doodles started as very simple illustrations and evolved to express a much fuller range of creative techniques and feelings. What began with a single stick figure has come to explore fuller illustrations, animations, and interactive experiences too.The next frontier is mobile technology. For some time we have been developing doodles to be enjoyed and experienced on-the go. There's more on the way too.

How do you handle controversies around doodles? For instance, in 2013, yellow was used instead of saffron in the Indian flag. Do you respond to the criticism?
Doodles are meant to be positive experience and we don't intend to upset anyone. That said, we do listen to feedback and if we inadvertently make a mistake then we try to fix and learn from it. When we became aware of the tricolour mistake, for example, we immediately added saffron and reposted the doodle.

Which are some of your favourite India specific doodles?
There are many, but my absolute favourites are the doodle for Shakuntala Devi, a math prodigy and educator known as the human computer and the doodle for Anant Pai, the creator of Amar Chitra Katha comics. I found both of these figures to be incredibly inspiring. As a visual storyteller, I'm also a fan of the doodles for RK Laxman and Satyajit Ray. For Ray's 92nd birthday, we made a doodle with a famous scene from his film Pather Panchali.

How long is the planning stage? Is there room for spontaneity?
Doodles that involve interactive games take up more time. We do plan pretty far in advance, but leave some room for spontaneity as well. The recent Doodle Fruit Games during the Rio Olympics took nearly a year of development, for instance, but the doodle celebrating the discovery of water on Mars w Bender was created on the same day the news broke.

How old is the average Google doodler and what is he/she like?
We value diversity. Our team has people from different cultural and academic backgrounds -creative writers, illustrators, gamers, engineers, classically trained artists... One thing that is common to us all is curiosity and the passion to use art and technology to bring people together.

You have spent time in Madurai working with a sign painter. What attracted you to sign painting? Do you remember any of the Tamil you learnt?
In 2000-2001, I visited Madurai and apprenticed as a sign painter. Arriving in India, I instantly fell in love with the typography and illustration of India's hand painted signs. I was lucky to find a kind and talented sign painter as a teacher. I made a few paintings, including a portrait of Superstar Rajinikanth. It's not lost on me that being a Google Doodler is basically a sign painting job. We're trying to make art out of everyday things too. I studied Tamil intensively before arriving in India and throughout my time in Madurai. I still remember a bit of it, but what I remember more are the friends I made and delicious dosas I ate.