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Hand block-printing in Jaipur

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for makers & lovers of craft —

Heritage & Textile Experiences

17 days North India & Gujarat 10+ hands-on craft workshops Led by Kapil

The journey

India told through cloth, colour and the human hand

This is a journey for people who don’t just want to see beautiful things — they want to understand how they’re made, and to make some themselves. Over seventeen days we follow the thread of Indian craft from the Mughal lanes of Old Delhi to the artisan villages of Kutch.

You’ll dip cloth into living indigo vats in Bagru, carve a print with a Rogan-art master in Kutch, paint a miniature in Udaipur, and stand among the world’s largest open-air laundry in Mumbai. Forts and palaces along the way; hands stained with dye by the end.

“Curated for artisans and heritage enthusiasts. By the end, you don’t just own a scarf — you know the hands that made it.”

Kapil Raj Singh, your private guide in India and Nepal

KapilKapil Raj Singh Rathore · your guide for all 17 days

Price on request A bespoke, small-group craft journey

Duration17 days

RouteDelhi → Mumbai

RegionsRajasthan & Gujarat

StyleHands-on, immersive

GuideKapil, in person

Best season: the cool, dry winter months — ideal for Rajasthan & Gujarat. Ask for dates.

Plan this trip with Kapil →
No middlemen · you talk directly to Kapil
Hands-on, not hands-off

The crafts you’ll get your hands on

This isn’t window-shopping. You’ll sit with the makers and try the techniques yourself.

Jaipur · Bagru

Block printing

Hand-carved wooden blocks, plus Dabu mud-resist and natural indigo vats.

Delhi

Zardozi embroidery

The gold-thread embroidery of the old Mughal workshops in Kinari Bazaar.

Udaipur

Miniature painting

A class in the centuries-old Rajput miniature tradition in the Old City.

Udaipur

Henna (mehndi)

A traditional henna-tattoo workshop — learn the patterns and their meaning.

Patan, Gujarat

Patan Patola

The dazzling double-ikat weaving — one of the rarest textiles on earth.

Ajrakpur, Kutch

Ajrak printing

The complex, multi-stage resist printing of the Sindhi tradition.

Nirona, Kutch

Rogan art

Painting with boiled castor oil — a craft kept alive by a single family.

Sumrasar · Jodhpur

Embroidery & rug weaving

Kutchi mirror-work embroidery and Jodhpur’s hand-knotted Durry rugs.

The route

Delhi to Mumbai, the artisan way

From the imperial north, through the textile heart of Gujarat, to the energy of Mumbai. Gold marks the Gujarat leg.

1DelhiStart
2JaipurRajasthan
3JodhpurRajasthan
4UdaipurRajasthan
5AhmedabadGujarat
6PatanGujarat
7Kutch / BhujGujarat
8MumbaiFinale
Day by day

Seventeen days, in three chapters

Tap any day to open it. Everything can be tailored — more time at the loom, less on the road.

Part one

The Imperial & Rajput Heritage

Delhi · Jaipur · Jodhpur · Udaipur
Day1Delhi arrival & Old Delhi heritageMughal lanes
Straight into the heart of it: the great Jama Masjid, a rickshaw ride through the tangled lanes of Chandni Chowk, and Kinari Bazaar — home of dazzling Zardozi gold-thread embroidery.

Zardozi embroidery
Day2Delhi → Jaipur~5.5 hrs
A morning of Mughal architecture at Humayun’s Tomb and India Gate, then the drive south to the Pink City of Jaipur.
Day3Jaipur, the Pink CityForts & textile museum
Amer Fort, the floating Jal Mahal, the City Palace and the Hawa Mahal — and the wonderful Anokhi Museum of Hand Printing, the perfect primer for the printing to come.
Day4Jaipur: cycles, silver & blocksworkshop day
A dawn bicycle tour through the old city and flower markets, a visit to a traditional silver-jewellery workshop in Bani Park, and an afternoon hands-on block-printing class at Creatis.

Block printingSilver craft
Day5Jaipur → Jodhpur via Bagru~6 hrs
We break the drive at Bagru village to see Dabu (mud-resist) printing and dip cloth into living natural-indigo vats — one of the most magical processes in textile craft.

Dabu & indigo
Day6Jodhpur: rugs, handicrafts & MehrangarhThe Blue City
A Bishnoi village safari and a Durry rug-weaving workshop, a handicrafts factory (wood carving & bone-inlay), then the mighty Mehrangarh Fort, Jaswant Thada and the blue-washed lanes below.

Durry rug weaving
Day7Jodhpur → Udaipur via Ranakpur~6 hrs
En route we stop at the breathtaking Ranakpur Jain Temple, a marble marvel of 1,444 carved pillars, before arriving in romantic Udaipur.
Day8Udaipur: painting, henna & palacesLake Pichola
A morning miniature-painting class and a henna workshop in the Old City; in the afternoon the City Palace, the garden of Saheliyon-ki-Bari, and a sunset boat ride on Lake Pichola.

Miniature paintingHenna
Part two

The Gujarat Textile Intensive

Ahmedabad · Patan · Modhera · Kutch
Day9Udaipur → Ahmedabadinto Gujarat
We cross into Gujarat. In Ahmedabad, visit Gandhi’s Sabarmati Ashram and the beautiful, intricately carved Adalaj Stepwell.
Day10Ahmedabad: the Calico Museumby appointment
A privileged visit to the world-renowned Calico Museum of Textiles — one of the finest textile collections on earth, open strictly by appointment.
Day11Ahmedabad → Patan → Modhera~3.5 hrs
The rare double-ikat Patan Patola weave, the UNESCO-listed Rani Ki Vav stepwell, and the exquisite Modhera Sun Temple.

Patan Patola (double ikat)
Day12–15Kutch artisan villagesBhuj base · 4 days
Four immersive days based in Bhuj, exploring the legendary craft villages of Kutch: Ajrakpur for Ajrak resist printing, Nirona for the rare Rogan art, and Sumrasar for intricate mirror-work embroidery — time spent with the families who keep these traditions alive.

Ajrak printingRogan artKutch embroidery
Part three

The Mumbai Finale

Industry, resilience & one last market
Day16Bhuj → Mumbaiflight
We fly to Mumbai for a different side of craft and industry. An educational, respectful guided walk through Dharavi — its recycling trades, leather workshops and the Kumbharwada potters’ quarter — then a drive past Marine Drive, the ‘Queen’s Necklace’, at dusk.
Day17Dhobi Ghat, CSMVS & departurefinal morning
An early visit to Dhobi Ghat, the world’s largest open-air laundry, at its busy best; the textile gallery of the CSMVS museum in its grand Indo-Saracenic building; and one last dive into the historic Mangaldas cloth market before your evening transfer to the airport.

Mangaldas cloth market

Curated for artisans & heritage enthusiasts — guided by Kapil Raj Singh Rathore.

Quote

Learned so much about the customs, rituals, history and craft — a trip full of highlights you’ll never forget.

Wilma Scharff
From our travellers’ own cameras

Real moments from the workshops

Not stock photos — these are snapshots from the craft days themselves.

Hand block printing at Creatis, Jaipur
Naturally dyed cloth drying
Resist printing by hand
Hand block-printed fabric
At the potter’s wheel
Durry rug weaving, Jodhpur
A hands-on block-printing class
A finished hand block-printed textile
Cta
Ready when you are

Let’s plan your craft journey

Want this full odyssey, or a shorter craft-focused trip in just Rajasthan or just Gujarat? Tell me what draws you and I’ll tailor it — no middlemen, just Kapil.

Start the conversation →