In the beginning in India, there were just artists. With the advent of computers artists started working on GUIs. These people made skins for UIs and gradually they were in large numbers and called themselves Graphic Artists.
So, the more posh of them who studied from posh schools abroad actually understood the difference between design and art distinguished themselves as graphic designers. These graphic designers were all over, making brochures, cards and soon Logos.
With the internet boom in India, the smarter graphic designers started providing services in making websites where they created Logos, banners and templates pages with the HTML work. The promoted their designation to web designers.
With the IT boom in India, many web-designers were hired by IT companies to work not on websites but web applications. They did the same stuff though but got lot more money and so got promoted to UI designers.
Then there were UI designers who worked as web designers earlier. This means they know how the UI actually worked and not just looked. These people provided the service of creating the entire front-end. They not only made the visuals but also gave you the HTMLs for it. And so, UI designers meant one knew html as well.
At that time some people began to study a thing called usability from abroad. They presumed they were smarter and posher than a UI designer because they could make the s/w easier to use. So they started calling themselves usability engineers.
Usability engineers needed the money to pay for the MS education loans so they decided to directly jump one position over UI designers. They began to give the UI to UI designers who would go ahead and develop it.
Some visually inclined usability engineers and usability inclined UI designers merged the roles between the two and called themselves then interaction designers.
By this time there were postings in forums for usability engineers, interaction designers and UI designers. Slowly companies had a whole division dedicated to such people. So there where hierarchies built as in any other division. Then there were posting for senior interaction UI designers. designers, principle designers, evangelists. Now the last category for interesting. In order to survive as a division in a company you need to generate revenue. So, the evangelists where the people who specialized in brainwashing. Well, they convinced the organization for usability and got more projects.
All companies pretty much delivered the same quality work - good or bad dunno. Well, how could they then pitch for work differently. Well there are names just like this post. They called themselves all different things like User Experience Groups, Consumer Experience Group, Communication Design Group, Art Department, Usability Group, Design Group, etc. But pretty much they all did the same work.
Soon, more quality work started to happen in these departments thanks to all the convincing. So came newer positions like usability analysts. They did something called expert review. Expert reviews was a way to showcase talents in the company. You could get more work through expert reviews.
The departments became richer and realized that they could now afford a usability lab. "This is one thing that all westerners have and also makes us look more professional" they said. So the newest posting of a user researcher. Plus of course the money.
Well this is pretty much the story of UX in India.
