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Rogan painting is an art of cloth printing practiced in
Gujarat Gujarat (, ) is a state along the western coast of India. Its coastline of about is the longest in the country, most of which lies on the Kathiawar peninsula. Gujarat is the fifth-largest Indian state by area, covering some ; and the nin ...
,
Peshawar Peshawar (; ps, پېښور ; hnd, ; ; ur, ) is the sixth most populous city in Pakistan, with a population of over 2.3 million. It is situated in the north-west of the country, close to the International border with Afghanistan. It is ...
and
Sindh Sindh (; ; ur, , ; historically romanized as Sind) is one of the four provinces of Pakistan. Located in the southeastern region of the country, Sindh is the third-largest province of Pakistan by land area and the second-largest province ...
. In this craft, paint made from boiled oil and vegetable dyes is laid down on fabric using either a metal block (printing) or a
stylus A stylus (plural styli or styluses) is a writing utensil or a small tool for some other form of marking or shaping, for example, in pottery. It can also be a computer accessory that is used to assist in navigating or providing more precision ...
(painting). The craft nearly died out in the late 20th century, with rogan painting being practiced by only a few families in Gujrat of India and Peshawar in Pakistan. The name itself means oil.


History

The process of applying this oil-based paint to fabric began among the Hindu and Muslim
Khatri Khatri is a caste of the Indian subcontinent that is predominantly found in India, but also in Pakistan and Afghanistan. In the subcontinent, they were mostly engaged in mercantilistic professions such as banking and trade, they were the d ...
s, a community in
Gujarat Gujarat (, ) is a state along the western coast of India. Its coastline of about is the longest in the country, most of which lies on the Kathiawar peninsula. Gujarat is the fifth-largest Indian state by area, covering some ; and the nin ...
. Although the name ''rogan'' (and some of the traditional designs) suggests an origin in Indian culture, there are no reliable historic records to prove this. The word ''rogan'' comes from Persian or
Sanskrit Sanskrit (; attributively , ; nominalization, nominally , , ) is a classical language belonging to the Indo-Aryan languages, Indo-Aryan branch of the Indo-European languages. It arose in South Asia after its predecessor languages had Trans-cul ...
, meaning oil and rangkaam Rogan painting was initially practiced in several locations in the Gujarat region. The painted fabric was mostly purchased by women of the lower castes who wanted to decorate clothing and bed coverings for their weddings. Therefore, it was a seasonal art, with most of the work taking place during the several months when most weddings take place. During the rest of the year, the artisans would switch to other forms of work, such as agriculture. With the rise of cheaper, machine-made
textile Textile is an umbrella term that includes various fiber-based materials, including fibers, yarns, filaments, threads, different fabric types, etc. At first, the word "textiles" only referred to woven fabrics. However, weaving is not t ...
s in the late 20th century, roghan-painted products became relatively more expensive, and many artists turned to other occupations. Ultimately, few families in the Gujarat, continued the craft.


Resurgence of the art

In the late 20th and early 21st centuries, several factors came together to bring about a renewed interest in rogan art, especially painting. First, after the
2001 Gujarat earthquake The 2001 Gujarat earthquake, also known as the Bhuj earthquake, occurred on 26 January, India's 52nd Republic Day, at . The epicentre was about 9 km south-southwest of the village of Chobari in Bhachau Taluka of Kutch District of Gujara ...
, when much of the region was devastated, the water and electricity infrastructure was improved, new roads were built, and the number of flights into the region was increased, all of which led to an increase in tourism. Second, local
cooperatives A cooperative (also known as co-operative, co-op, or coop) is "an autonomous association of persons united voluntarily to meet their common economic, social and cultural needs and aspirations through a jointly owned and democratically-control ...
and
non-profit group A nonprofit organization (NPO) or non-profit organisation, also known as a non-business entity, not-for-profit organization, or nonprofit institution, is a legal entity organized and operated for a collective, public or social benefit, in co ...
s helped local artisans, including roghan artists, to increase their market by selling in urban settings and online. Third, many artisans won state and national awards for their art, thus increasing the prestige of their work. Finally, in 2014, Prime Minister
Narendra Modi Narendra Damodardas Modi (; born 17 September 1950) is an Indian politician serving as the List of Prime Ministers of India, 14th and current Prime Minister of India since 2014. Modi was the List of chief ministers of Gujarat, Chief Minist ...
visited the U.S. White House, and gave
President Obama Barack Hussein Obama II ( ; born August 4, 1961) is an American politician who served as the 44th president of the United States from 2009 to 2017. A member of the Democratic Party, Obama was the first African-American president of the U ...
two roghan paintings including a
tree of life The tree of life is a fundamental archetype in many of the world's mythological, religious, and philosophical traditions. It is closely related to the concept of the sacred tree.Giovino, Mariana (2007). ''The Assyrian Sacred Tree: A Histo ...
. They were painted by
Abdul Gafur Khatri Abdul Gafur Khatri Master is a rogan artist from Nirona village in Kutch district, Gujarat, India. Biography Abdulgafur Khatri was born in a family of rogan artists from Nirona village in Kutch. It was the last family of Rogan artists. In ...
, a national award winner. Artisans in Gujarat have introduced contemporary products to appeal to tourists, such as God's portrait, Raja Ram Darbar, bags, cushion covers, table cloths, wall hangings, and pillow covers. The tree of life continues to be a major motif. The number of tourists to the artisans workshop increased steadily in the 2010s to as many as 400 people per day, causing traffic jams in the village. In an attempt to keep up with increased demand, in 2010 the artisans began to train women for the first time. Previously, it was feared that women would spread the secrets of the craft when they married out of the family. In 2015, twenty women were working with the family in Kutch Gujarat. Following the
COVID-19 pandemic The COVID-19 pandemic, also known as the coronavirus pandemic, is an ongoing global pandemic of coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) caused by severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2). The novel virus was first identified ...
in 2020, a number of the tourists visiting them dropped significantly and the women working with them were laid off. Only family members were left to work on the craft.


Process of rogan printing

Rogan paint is produced by boiling
castor oil Castor oil is a vegetable oil pressed from castor beans. It is a colourless or pale yellow liquid with a distinct taste and odor. Its boiling point is and its density is 0.961 g/cm3. It includes a mixture of triglycerides in which abo ...
for about two days and then adding vegetable pigments and a
binding agent A binder or binding agent is any material or substance that holds or draws other materials together to form a cohesive whole mechanically, chemically, by adhesion or cohesion. In a more narrow sense, binders are liquid or dough-like substances th ...
; the resulting paint is thick and shiny. The cloth that is painted or printed on is usually a dark color, which makes the intense colors stand out. In rogan printing, the pattern is applied using metal blocks with patterns carved into them. In rogan painting, elaborate designs are produced freehand, by trailing thread-like strands of paint off of a stylus. Frequently, half of a design is painted, then the cloth is folded in half, transferring a mirror image to the other half of the fabric. The designs include floral motifs, animals, and local folk art.


See also

*
Woodblock printing on textiles Woodblock printing on textiles is the process of printing patterns on textiles, usually of linen, cotton or silk, by means of incised wooden blocks. It is the earliest and slowest of all methods of textile printing. Block printing by hand is a ...


References


External links


The Link Between Modi, Obama and the Village of Nirona in Kutch!

Official website of the Nirvana Khatri family

Official website of Ashish Kansara

A video showing the process of rogan painting

Rogan Art Painting Saree

Rogan art Traditional Lehenga

Rogan Art Traditional Blouse Piece
* https://www.fadingcultures.org/single-project-4 Rogan silk painting in Pakistan] {{fabric Textile printing Textile arts of India Gujarati culture Culture of Kutch Printed fabrics