Unique Kites Make Hyderabad’s Sky Colourful
Professional kite flyers, including from foreign countries and other states, and local youngsters, throng the ground with their kites and waited for better wind conditions.
Hyderabad: Colourful kites of different shapes and sizes took to the skies as the three-day International Kite and Sweet Festival commenced at Secunderabad Parade Ground here on Tuesday. A whale-shaped kite from France was the major attraction of the festival, while tortoise, 100-metre snake, alien, Shinchan, and dragon-shaped kites, also captivated the visitors.
Professional kite flyers, including from foreign countries and other states, and local youngsters, throng the ground with their kites and waited for better wind conditions. Several kite flyers turned up at the event with specialised themed kites, such as 150 years of 'Vande Mataram' , trains and planes, and animals.
One such professional kite flyer was Alex from Ukraine who arrived at the venue with a kite shaped cat, which he adores. His collection included kites measuring three to five metres.
Henry, who hails from Vietnam, said it was his second time at the festival in Hyderabad. "I have been flying kites for 15 years. Earlier, I participated in kite festivals held in Chennai and Puducherry," he said.
Tourism minister Jupally Krishna Rao, who launched the festival, emphasised that festivals with centuries of history were vital for safeguarding the state’s rich culture and traditions. He announced the government's plans to promote large-scale kite manufacturing within Hyderabad.
Kaval Preet Singh, an actor, singer, and kite flyer, arrived with kites, including Shinchan, snake, butterfly and dragon designs that stood out. "Compared to other places, the vibe and energy at the Hyderabad festival are good. The snake kite has a tail measuring 100 metres. Different kites require different threads for proper balance, and we do not use cotton thread," he explained.
Kotha Srinivas, the president of Kohinoor Kite Flying Club from Hyderabad, came up with a special theme to mark 150 years of 'Vande Mataram', honouring the sacrifices of freedom fighters. As the names of thousands of martyrs in Jallianwala Bagh and other wars were not fully known, they represented them through a kite.
As for the sweet festival, 300 participants displayed and sold sweets that were homemade. Sweet varieties included ‘Koloocheh’ from Iran, traditional sweets from Afghanistan, ‘Mustard leaf salan’, ‘Ghajar ka Halwa’ of Punjab, ‘Unniyappam’, ‘Ela Ada’ and ‘Therali Appam’ of Kerala, ‘Rasgulla’ and ‘Malai Jamun’ from Kolkata. Telangana sweets were made available to the visitors.
Kites filled the sky at the Bathukammakunta that was recently rejuvenated by HYDRAA. Senior Congress leader V. Hanumantha Rao and HYDRAA commissioner A.V.Ranganath participated in the kite festival organised at lake.
