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Uttarayana is celebrated as an event signifying a planetary transition and thereby heralding a change of seasons. It marks the end of winter, with the return of the sun to the Northern Hemisphere. This festival is celebrated annually on January 14 in western India. Kite flying is a traditional Uttrayan activity. The kites used are prepared from thin paper and carefully crafted with bamboo sticks. The thread to fly the kites; is specially prepared, using cotton thread, coated with a mix of adhesive and  fine  glass  powder,  which  is  dried  over a period  of time. The kite

flyer must keep his kite aloft while others try to sever the thread using their own kites. When people win this battle of kites in the skies, they celebrate with cheerful shouts of "Kade" and drum beats. It is a common scene to see people dancing and socializing freely. Once the sun sets, people can watch paper lanterns called tukkal flying in the night sky. What's more, the day is marked, by eating traditional delicacies.

Every year, Ahmedabad hosts the International Kite Festival, organized by the government of Gujarat in association with the Tourism Corporation of Gujarat. People from far and wide, be it Japan, Australia, Malaysia, USA, Brazil, Canada and European Countries come to Ahmedabad to participate in this festival.

 

    

Early preparations for the kite-season. The kite strings are stretched like this and coated with dye that is embedded with powdered glass and later wound into lots. So when kites are flown kite-flyers can cut & capture others' kites. Near IIM, Ahmedabad.

 

 

Detail of colored paste for coating kite strings. This thriving seasonal cottage industry with all its innovations and clever production techniques are developed on prohibitive budgets and carried out on road-sides around Ahmedabad in Gujarat.

 

Colors for coating kite string (manja) on the roadside near Dilli Diwarja on the eve of Uttarayan - the kite festival of January.

 

At the side of the kite market at Dilli Diwarja there are many of these 'manja' makers with their spinning reels. Here rice and ground glass paste are added to dyes and the mixture is used to coat the kite strings used for lively kite-fights.

 

 

 

In the kite market at Dilli Diwarja, a small boy in charge of a manual 'manja' wheel that produces kite strings coated with powdered glass. The string will soon get wound on to the 'firki' (reel) like the empty one he is holding.

Kite season is in full swing which means that road-side guys are coating kite-string with colored paste mixed with powdered glass so that fliers can cut each other's kites. Here, empty reels are waiting to be loaded with string.

 

As millions of kite enthusiasts pitch themselves at the rooftops, waves of flying kites overwhelm an otherwise deep blue sky. On January 14, watch the sky change colors... like a rainbow in a glittering sun after the rain and bask in the glory of Uttarayan, when the skies of Gujarat give way to colorful kites.

About Uttarayan

• Uttarayan (known as Makar Sakranti in other parts of India) is the day when the sun starts to travel northwards marking the decline of Winter.
  
• The days become longer, the skies clearer and the breeze cooler. A feeling of anticipation, joy and jubilation grips all who celebrate the occasion of thanksgiving and merry-making.
  
• Gujarat celebrates more than 100 festivals every year! But Among these, the festival of Uttarayan is one of the grandest and hugely celebrated by masses In Gujarat.
  
• Uttarayan is a public holiday when almost whole population makes a point to be at roof-tops. Rivalry between neighbors' and friends to out do each other gives one of the most memorable moments of life.
  
• To outdo each other in kite flying skills and in shouting too & why not as they have prepared hard for the day as preparation begins very early for festival.
  
• Loud music is played on terrace and everyone makes and extra effort to look special on the day.
  
• Food is where the heart is and so from cold drinks to pieces of sugar cane and home made sweets are the order of the day lunch is intentionally kept short by die heard kite enthusiasts to get more time for kite flying.
  

History & Significance

• The fascination and the revelry associated with the kite flying spread across age groups, class and communities. It is a festival everyone celebrate we can say it the most secular festival in the world.
  
• Although, Uttarayan is predominantly a Hindu festival marking the awakening of the gods from their deep slumber.
  
• But history says India developed a rich tradition of kite flying because of patronage of the Kings and Nawabs who found the sport both entertaining and a way of displaying their prowess.
  
• Trained fliers were employed to fly kites for kings. As everyone likes to do what kings do? & slowly, the art started becoming popular amongst the masses.
  
• Today, manufacturing of kites is a serious business. It attracts big names of the corporate world as kites provide for the most cost-effective opportunity for branding. The stakes are high and prizes for the competition grand.
  

 

Preparation

• Months before the festival of Uttarayan, homes in the localities of various cities in Gujarat turn into kite producing factories with all family members doing their bit in the seasonal cottage business.
  
• The paper and sticks are cut, the glue is stirred and thousands of kites are prepared in the market.
  
• The string is coated with a special glass powder and rice paste, all set to cut each other's strings and knock down the kites. The size of the kite ranges from nine inches to three feet.
  
• Members of various communities irrespective of cast and creed are engaged in the business of kites.
  
• Rich or poor, people enjoy this festival in their own ways.
  
• The aerodynamic skill, devotion and ingenuity that goes into the kite making and flying is almost a religion in itself, honed to the level of an art form, though it looks deceptively simple.
  

Ahmedabad: Kite Capital

• Although the Kite Festival is celebrated all over Gujarat, it is the most exciting in the capital city of Ahmedabad. The night before is electric with brisk business in buying and selling kites, in amazingly numerous bulk purchases.
  
• The Patang Bazaar (kite market), situated in the heart of Ahmedabad city, is open 24 hours a day during the Uttarayan week. A visit to the Bazaar in the middle of the night proves beyond all doubt that the entire population of the city is obsessed with kites and they crowd the streets and buy the stocks while negotiating and enjoying through the night.
  
• Uttarayan is the time to indulge in ceaseless amazement - in the most pulse racing kite competitions. There are kites and more kites, in all shapes and designs, but some stand out for their sheer size and novelty.
  
• And the excitement continues even after dark. The nights see the arrival of the illuminated box kites, often in a series strung on one line, to be launched into the sky. Known as tukkals, these kites add a touch of splendor to the dark sky.
  
• What's more, the day is marked with the traditional food/delicacy festival of Gujarat like the undhiyu (a delicacy of vegetables), jalebi (sweets), til ladoo (sweets made of sesame seeds) and chikki for the guests from different parts of world.
  

The International Kite Festival    

• Every year, the extraordinary fanfare associated with the paper works of art called kite brings people together from far and wide - be it from Japan, Australia, Malaysia, USA, Brazil, Canada and European Countries - to participate in the International Kite Festival.