He completed his early education at the Chiney-Wali mosque in Lahore and then took admission in the Technical Railway School. Chugtai went on to study both in the sub-continent and abroad. He also studied at the well known Mayo School of Art, Lahore which is now known as the National College of Arts. His individual style was formed in the years before 1947, so the main body of his work was produced before Pakistan was born: Persian and Mongol Traditional Style. At Lahore's Mayo School of Art, Chughtai emphasized crafts more than art. He did not stay there very long and started learning on his own, concentrating on the traditional methods and techniques of Mongol artists. Then, he moved on to Calcutta and worked there foe several years, painting in Bengal School Style. He also studied under Abanindranath Tagore and Printmaking in London. He was also Head-instructor in Chromo-Lithography at the Mayo School of Art, Lahore.
