Kutch has more living craft traditions per square kilometre than almost anywhere on Earth. Rogan art, Ajrakh block printing, Rabari embroidery, bandhani (tie-dye), bell metal casting, lacquer work — each practised in specific villages, each passed through generations, each under threat from machine manufacturing.
I visited four craft villages over two days. Instead of describing what I saw, I'll let the artisans talk.
Rogan Art: Abdul Gafur Khatri, Nirona Village
Tell me about Rogan art.
Rogan means oil. We heat castor oil until it becomes a thick paste, then work it with a metal stylus on fabric. The paste never touches the fabric directly — we use a thin thread of paste held between the stylus and the cloth. It's like painting with a strand of hair.
My family has done this for seven generations. At one point, only two families in the world practised Rogan — both in Nirona. Now it's mainly my family. My sons are learning.
How long does one piece take?
A small wall hanging — maybe 60cm square — takes two days. The large ones, a week. The Tree of Life design is the most famous. That's the one Prime Minister Modi gifted to President Obama. [Laughs] After that, everyone wanted Tree of Life. But we make many designs — peacocks, flowers, geometric patterns.
What should tourists know?
Buy from the workshop, not from middlemen in city shops. When you buy in Mumbai or Delhi, the shopkeeper takes 70% of the price. Here, you pay less and I receive more. A small piece costs INR 500-1,500 from me. The same piece in a Delhi boutique costs INR 3,000-5,000.
Also, test the quality. Real Rogan paste is thick and raised on the fabric — you can feel it with your fingers. Machine prints are flat. If it feels flat, it's not Rogan.
Ajrakh Block Printing: Ismail Khatri, Ajrakhpur
What makes Ajrakh different from other block printing?
Ajrakh uses only natural dyes — indigo from plants, red from madder root, black from iron rust and jaggery. The process takes 17 steps and two weeks minimum. Commercial block printing uses synthetic dyes and takes one day. You can see the difference immediately — our colours deepen with washing. Synthetic colours fade.
The blocks themselves are carved from teak wood — each block takes a week to carve. Some of our patterns are 3,000 years old. The same motifs appear on Indus Valley pottery at Dholavira, 30km from here.
You relocated your entire workshop?
After the 2001 earthquake destroyed Bhuj, we rebuilt in what is now Ajrakhpur — "the city of Ajrakh." We designed the village specifically for the craft: workshop spaces, dye vats, drying yards, and homes. About 30 families work here now.
What frustrates you about tourism?
People come for 20 minutes, take selfies with the blocks, and buy nothing. The workshop is not a museum — it's how we live. If you come, spend an hour. Watch the process. Ask questions. And if you value the craft, buy something. A metre of Ajrakh fabric costs INR 300-800. That's two weeks of work by multiple artisans.
Rabari Embroidery: Savitaben, Bhujodi
How did you learn embroidery?
Every Rabari girl learns from her mother. I started at age seven. My mother, grandmother, great-grandmother — all embroiderers. The stitches are specific to our community. Other communities have different patterns. A trained eye can tell which village a piece comes from by the stitchwork.
What do the patterns mean?
Every motif tells a story. The peacock means rain is coming (peacocks dance before monsoon). The scorpion means protection. The mirror-work — the small round mirrors stitched into the fabric — was originally to ward off evil eye. Now tourists just think it's decorative. [Smiles] It is decorative. But it's also protection.
How long does a piece take?
A dowry chest cover takes three months of daily work. A large wall hanging, two months. A small bag or purse, one week. People see the price — INR 2,000-5,000 for a bag — and think it's expensive. They don't think about the 40 hours of hand-stitching.
Bell Metal: Luhar Family, Nirona
What is bell metal?
A copper-tin alloy. We melt it, pour it into clay molds, and hand-finish each piece. The specialty is bells — cow bells, camel bells, door bells, prayer bells. Each makes a specific tone depending on the copper-tin ratio. My grandfather could hear a bell and tell you the exact alloy composition.
Is the younger generation continuing?
My son works with me. His friend went to work in a factory in Ahmedabad — he earns more there. This is the reality. The craft survives when it pays enough to keep people here. Tourism helps, but it's seasonal. The government gives some subsidies, but they're small.
How to Visit
Hire a guide through Bhuj's craft cooperatives (Kala Raksha or Kutch Mahila Vikas Sangathan). INR 1,000-1,500 for a full day covering 3-4 villages. The guides know the artisans personally and ensure you're visiting genuine workshops, not tourist-oriented imitations.
A typical day: Nirona (Rogan art + bell metal) → Ajrakhpur (block printing) → Bhujodi (weaving + embroidery) → Hodka (mud-mirror work). Each village is 20-40 minutes apart.
Buy directly. Pay fairly. Ask permission before photographing. The artisans of Kutch are generous hosts. Respect that generosity.
If craft traditions interest you, combine Kutch with Jaipur (block printing, blue pottery) and Varanasi (silk weaving) for the ultimate Indian artisan circuit.
