New Delhi, March 27 -- "Green or yellow?" Jepar Rajesh Karsanbhai, 26, asks ChatGPT on his phone about the colour palette of his brand's spring-summer collection. Sitting in the verandah of his onestorey house in Sangnara, about 50km from Bhuj in Gujarat's Kutch district, he's keen on green-the kind he's noticed when sunlight falls on the castor oil leaves growing outside his house.

"Light yellow is trending. It will help you bring more visual impact," ChatGPT suggests.

Rajesh chuckles: "I will do both."

Since launching his label, Inspire Weave, two years ago, Rajesh, a class X dropout, has been experimenting with ways to grow his work, especially on Instagram, the source of most of his 50-plus clients across India. He began by posting...