Not to be confused with the Uttarayan that stands for the period between winter and summer solstice (Dec-22 and June-21). This Uttarayan is the name of a mega international kite festival which happens in Ahmedabad. The blue sky is filled with colourful, small, large and extra large kites, all flying and fighting together, spirited and jolly, a once in a year scenery is cultivated in the lands of Gujarat on the day of Makar Sankranti. Everything, really every other activity stands still but only kites is being handled and lofted high and higher in the sky with the energy unmatched and unseen.
This is the day and place where the fun of flying kite turns into a battleground of angry fighter kites. The flyers have to cut other’s string in the pursuit of glory. Not to forget, with fighting comes preparation. The kites that are brought to the festival are custom made (most of them) with better bamboos frames and even engineered perfectly to take care of the tensile strength and other technical factors. And the most important, the Manja which a string that is made of a mixture of glue and glass so as to be razor sharp in cutting the enemy strings. Patang Bazaar is a famous place from where the most kites comes from. In the festival, the wau-balang kites from Malaysia, llayang-llayang from Indonesia and brilliant kite designers and flyers from USA, Japan and several countries will be present to give tight competition. An eminent kite maker-flyer Rasulbhai Rahimbhai of Ahmedabad displays a startling show of flying 500 kites all together.
Food, the mouthwatering laddoos and sweets will be presented in abundance. Everybody brings them (who comes empty handed?). Eating and enjoyment will be served full-on just that you have to fly the kite.
When
It is celebrated every year on the 14th of January, the festival of harvest and kites, Makar Sankranti.
Where
Several kite festivals are held in various parts of Gujarat including Surat, Vadodara and Rajkot. But the international kite festival is at Ahmedabad. The main function and almost all the best kites can be seen at Sardar Patel Stadium.
People fom many countries would be flocking to fly, see and relish the joviality of the 25th year of the international kite festival.