‘Kite’y Experience

I have come across many kite flyers, who irrespective of age just get excited for the game. Once my dad shared with me detail knowledge of how to ‘prepare a good kite’ to ‘how to fly it higher without touching ground’ techniques.
During my childhood, grandpa used to tell me stories of his boyish adventure and how he used to sneak pass his school corridor just to fly a kite and the consequences that followed next, usually with punishment of ‘kneel down’ and ‘caning ’.
Surprisingly the game was quite popular among girls gang. Well not as front players but mostly doing the back office job like preparing the glues, string setting, cutting etc. As I have heard from my uncles and mothers, it was a celebration indeed.

I wonder what happened to this so vibrant game. Leaving western zone of Gujarat, Rajasthan, I doubt hardly one nowadays take any interest. Can not blame them, where’s the opportunity. The skyscraper buildings, semi cloudy (smog) sky replaced kite flying with ‘need for speed II ’. Change after all is the constant element.



However, I was glad to be a spectator of a ‘kite flying competition’. I happened to visit a village, outskirt of a town called ‘Balurghat’. It was a grand event with locals pouring down, children shouting at the top of their voices accompanied by cycle bells. May be I can not write down the sensation I felt but I will try it. What I felt there was a ‘unity’ for a cause, innocence of human minds, cheerful ambience created by enthusiastic locals. In short it was brilliant.

But do you know what I enjoyed most?
When a kite which was flying high, navigated by a veteran sailor… went loose. It swung high, gave anticlockwise swirl midair and then started a ‘free fall’. Yes!! I enjoyed the freedom it showed , I enjoyed the life it lead and I witnessed the best part of kite flying; when it run loose …just out of any control.

image courtesy: google