Kites take over Ahmedabad skies

As the five-day International Kite Festival kicked off on Tuesday, Amdavadis had a wonderful opportunity once again to watch colourful kites of various shapes and sizes soaring over the Sabarmati riverfront. International kite flyers gathered at the riverfront to showcase their kite-flying skills. There were kite enthusiasts from other states also. 

Participants from Cambodia displayed kites having paintings of Apsaras, Cambodian temples and Bayon temples. Cheang Yarin from Cambodia said, "We have made two Cambodian kites - 'pocket kite' and 'ek musical kite'. My husband has painted the kites and depicted the Apsaras (celestial nymph) which are carved in the Angkor Vat temples."

Similarly, the participants from Bali displayed kites made of palm leaf. "We thought of displaying kites and promote the eco-friendly concept. For this, we have made kites with palm leaf and have also painted the kites depicting the eyes of Lord Jagannath," said Elle Ginanti of Bali.

The largest of all kites at the riverfront was from New Zealand, made by Simon Chisnall. "The kite measures 30 metre in length, including its long tail, and is 10 metre wide. It is different from the usual kites as it requires many strings to get hold of it and it needs strength to make it fly," said Simon.

There were also 3D kites. Rami Alkhal from Lebanon said, "We have made these 3D kites which look the same from any angle/direction. We have a variety of kites in 3D designs ranging from a bird to a boat."

He said that every year he looks forward to participating in the kite festival of Ahmedabad. "This festival gives me so much of joy,' he said.

Apart from kites, interesting gadgets attracted several eyeballs on Tuesday. One such gadget was a device for aerial photography made by Bert Maetens of Belgium. Maetens said, "This is the first time I flew this device in any Asian country. The device weighing 1.2 kg can be tied with a string to the kite which can go as high as up to 200 metre and can capture pictures and videos."

He said that he had tried flying the device in many European countries and it was his first visit to International Kite Festival in Ahmedabad.