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HERITAGE · ROGAN ART · NIRONARogan & Lacquer
In the village of Nirona survives Rogan — a rare craft of painting cloth with threads of boiled-oil paint, kept alive by a single family, alongside Kutch’s glowing lacquer-turned woodwork.
Painting with threads of oil
Rogan is one of India’s rarest crafts. Castor oil is boiled for hours into a thick, bright paste, which the artisan draws into fine elastic threads on a stylus and lays onto cloth — often working freehand, folding the fabric to mirror the design. Once practised by several families, it survives today chiefly with the Khatris of Nirona in Kutch. In the same village and across the region, craftsmen also turn and colour wood in vivid lacquer.
The craft’s revival is one of Indian handloom’s best stories: the Khatris of Nirona held the technique through its leanest decades, and recognition came in waves — national awards, museum commissions, and the moment that made headlines, when a rogan tree-of-life was India’s gift to the American president in 2014. The workshop now trains a new generation, women among them for the first time, and demonstrates the mesmerising thread-of-paint technique to every visitor.
Nirona sits an hour north of Bhuj on the Rann road, and pairs naturally with the village’s other crafts — copper bells and lacquer work — and the white Rann beyond. Buy from the makers; every genuine piece is signed and singular.
A craft on the edge of survival
Rogan's roots run back centuries, carried into Kutch along the Persian trade.
Once several villages practised it; the craft nearly died by the 1980s.
The Khatri family of Nirona kept it alive when everyone else stopped.
Today it is rare, prized, and known worldwide through one workshop.
Why come
Rogan art
Rogan is painting with oil-thickened colour, trailed from a stylus.
Freehand
No stencil, no sketch — the design flows freehand from the rod.
Lacquer wood
Castor oil boiled for days becomes the elastic paint itself.
Nirona village
Nirona village is the craft's one living hub.
Tree of life
The tree of life is the celebrated signature motif.
A rarity
Almost nowhere else on earth practises anything like it.
What to see
THE ARTRogan
Painted in oil.
THE WOODLacquer craft
Turned and coloured.
How to experience it
Go to Nirona
The craft village.
Watch Rogan
Threads of oil paint.
See the tree of life
The signature piece.
Find the lacquer wood
Bright turned craft.
Meet the artisans
Keepers of the craft.
Take a piece home
A true rarity.
Keeping a rare flame alive
Rogan’s survival is a story of dedication: as demand faded, it came down to a single family in Nirona to keep the craft from vanishing. Recognition has since grown — a Rogan “tree of life” has travelled the world as a gift of state — helping revive interest and secure the tradition’s future. Together with Kutch’s lacquer woodwork, it shows how the region guards even its most fragile skills.
This is one of many places worth seeing here — the full guide to Kutch has the rest.
Timing
Comfortable to travel.
Pair with the festival.
Very hot in Kutch.
⏰ The Nirona workshops welcome visitors year-round; winter, overlapping the Rann Utsav, is the most comfortable time.
Getting there
By Air
Bhuj Airport.
By Rail
Bhuj / Gandhidham.
By Road
Nirona, near Bhuj.
More in Kutch
NOV – FEB
Rann Utsav
A months-long desert carnival on the white salt — crafts, folk music and full-moon nights under the stars. Explore →
YEAR-ROUND
Living Crafts
Few regions on earth are as rich in living craft as Kutch — village upon village of embroiderers, weavers, block-printers and dyers, each keeping a distinct tradition alive by hand. Explore →
FOLK
Music & Dance
Kutch sings in many voices — the haunting Sufi strains of desert balladeers, the beat of the drum-driven dhamal, and folk dances that turn a festival night into pure rhythm. Explore →
COAST
Mandvi by the Sea
Mandvi is Kutch by the sea — a breezy beach town of the old shipbuilders, where wooden dhows still take shape by hand and the Vijay Vilas palace looks out over the Arabian waves. Explore →
What to eat
THALIKutchi Thali
Regional spread.
DABELIKutchi Dabeli
Spiced potato bun.
ROTLOBajra Rotlo
With butter & ghee.
CHAASChaas
Spiced buttermilk.
Rogan & Lacquer FAQ
What is Rogan art?
A rare Kutchi craft of painting cloth with fine threads of thick, boiled castor-oil paint, often worked freehand.
Who keeps it alive?
Chiefly the Khatri family of Nirona village, who have preserved the craft as others gave it up.
What is the "tree of life"?
A signature Rogan design; one such piece has famously been presented as a gift of state internationally.
What is Kutchi lacquer work?
A craft of turning and colouring wood in bright lacquer, also found around Nirona and Kutch.
Where can I see it?
In Nirona village, about 40 km from Bhuj, where the artisans demonstrate their work.
When should I visit?
Year-round, though the cool winter months are the most pleasant.
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Published 24 June 2026 · Updated 3 July 2026