Anna Hazare’s movement seems to have lost steam but the appeal of the man himself has not waned. One devoted fan of the Gandhian is Pappubhai Patangwala, a kite-maker who, for the kite festival, has made 1,100 plastic kites with Hazare’s picture printed on them. He has spent 15 days on this project and is now eagerly waiting for January 13 when he plans to fly them on the riverfront.
Each kite measures about 1.5 feet in length and is attached to a long string. Every kite has Anna’s picture printed on it with the Tricolour in the background. But why kites of plastic? “If I had made them of paper, they would have got torn,” Pappubhai said.
He said Anna’s picture had to be block-printed on the kites and that alone had cost him Rs35,000. An additional Rs25,000 was spent on other raw materials. When asked what had given him the idea of making kites on Anna, he said he got the idea after watching Anna on TV. He is a diehard supporter of Anna and his campaign for an effective anti-corruption law. “So many people have joined him. I did not get to meet him when he visited Ahmedabad but the wish remains,” he said. Besides Anna kites, Pappubhai will also fly 1,100 kites designed on Spiderman to attract children.
Another unique kite he is working on is a 25-ft-long cloth kite. This humongous kite will have on it the map of India with Gujarat highlighted in such a way as to show the development of the state, with some of its buildings and bridges marked out on it. Pappubhai chooses a theme for his kites each year. Last year it was chief ministers. This year it is Anna. “Our family discussed the theme before choosing it for this year. I will be flying the kites, along with my brother Ayub. Only we can do this; no one else has the talent to fly them,” the kite-maker said. His family is originally from Mathura and has been making kites for generations.
Pappubhai said his is the 14th generation of his family making kites. They had come to Ahmedabad 35 years back and are now well known for their unique kites.
The kite festival will have 81 contestants from 32 countries - include France, Germany and Italy - participating this year. “Different people come with different ideas. We are just one among them,” Pappubhai says humbly.
