Rogan, a 300-year-old craft tradition that once flourished in Gujarat’s Kutch region, today rests in the hands of Abdul Gafur Khatri’s family in Nirona village in the area. A fabric painting craft that has been handed down through the men, Rogan graced mainly ghaghra-cholis, bridal trousseaus, bedsheets and tablecloths. It now adorns more contemporary items.

A Rogan artist uses paints on fabric using a thick brightly coloured paint-like substance made with castor seed oil. Artisans place a small amount of the paste into their palm, and the paint is carefully moulded into patterns using a metal rod at room temperature.

The rod, which acts as a paintbrush, never comes in contact with the fabric. Later, artisans fold the fabric, creating a mirror image and with it, a design symmetry.

Lack of opportunities took it to the brink of extinction, with entire villages that practised the art switching to other trades. In 1983, a young Abdul Gafur Khatri followed the trend and went to Ahmedabad and Mumbai to find work. There were no tourists visiting Gujarat then and the art was not selling. It was only after a government project that the art was revived again.

Gafur became so attached to Rogan that he took it to the international level. Rogan art was presented to Barrack Obama, by Narendra Modi when he visited the US in 2014. Abdul Gafur Khatri has been awarded the Padma Shri (2019).