Delhi-NCR kite flyers stay homebound amid pandemic
Most kite flying enthusiasts have decide to celebrate the I- Day with their families
Come Independence Day and kites in all sizes and colours bring the sky to life. Several clubs in the country have kept this tradition of kite flying alive and soaring and every year, right before Independence Day, they organise friendly matches and competitions at various grounds in DelhiNCR. But, this year due to Covid-19 guidelines, such celebrations will shift to individual spaces and kite club members plan to spend quality time with their family and friends at home itself.
“I’m not in the Capital this time because I’m working from home; and there is no way that we can organise kite flying matches this I- Day,” says software professional Suneet Saurabh Srivastava, founder of Delhi-based Super 7 Kite Club , adding, “Since I’m in Lucknow, I’ll be celebrating this day with my family on the terrace. I’ll also be participating in some friendly kite flying matches, which are much less in number this year and are being conducted with all the necessary regulations.”
Explaining how kite clubs organise competitions, he adds, “In a normal game with other clubs, we exchange club stickers when one player cuts a kite of a player from another club, and then the team that cuts off more kites, wins the game. We count the number of stickers at the end to score the teams. Some major rules in club games are based on size of the kite, colour, and the type of manjha as only a special type of thread is allowed.”
Vipin Kumar, founder, Delhi Kite Flying, says, “For Independence Day, we will be flying kites from our terrace and celebrate the day with our families. And I’m expecting a surge in the number of kites in the sky as most of the people are at home, and they would definitely feel the urge to engage in this activity that has been a favourite among many.”
And it’s unfair to talk of kite competitions and not mention Old Delhi. Kafil Ahmed from Venus Kite Club, Daryaganj, says, “We will be celebrating I-Day on our terrace, which is very unlike us, as every year this day used to bring along major celebrations on various grounds of Delhi. For last many years, I had been going to Sarai Kale Khan ground, but this year main apni family ke saath terrace pe hi patangbazi karunga. Har baar mujhe bolte the ki hamare saath celebrate karo, is baar bhagwan ne unki sun hi li, chahe kisi bhi bahane se.”