Food, good wind and music mark kite festival

JAIPUR: After many years the elusive high-velocity winds added to the festivity of Makar Sakranti when kites of various colours, shapes and size dotted the sky. Most of the terraces remained packed with families and friends who enjoyed the festival with various dishes such as daal ke pakode, revri, gajak and pheeni while musical melodies and foot-tapping music set the mood for flying kites. Live commentary of snapping of kites enhanced the excitement with almost every terrace reverberating with ‘Woh Kaata.’

Every year the kite lovers damage more kites than they fly due to slow winds, but this year favourable wind speed was witnessed in and around the Pink City. It was indeed a pleasure for all those who had been waiting for the festival of Makar Sankranti.

At night, Jaipur witnessed colourful fireworks.

Be it the areas in the Walled City or other parts of the city every terrace saw a mix of kids, youngsters and elders. The kite flying also attracted visiting foreign tourists who too enjoyed the festival by flying kites.


Kids and youngsters along with young women and girls were seen enjoying the most while elders were on the terrace for the supervision to ensure no accident may take place. “Makar Sankranti is the time when we meet our neighbours on the terrace. For kids and youngsters it is kite flying that excites them for us it is just roaming around and gossiping with the neighbours and also seeing kids doing things properly,” said Snehlata Yadav, a 60-year-old woman who was seen enjoying the festival with her family of three sons, three daughters-in-law, six grandchildren and a few guests at her Joshi Marg situated house in Jhotwara.

Rajasthan chief minister Ashok Gehlot celebrated the festival with his family and friends.

In the afternoon high-velocity winds also played some spoilsport as it was getting difficult to hold the kites. “Hawa Honi chahiyey par itni tez bhi nahin, patang ki door sambhal hi nahi rahi (There should be winds but not so strong that you can’t hold strings),” said Mohammad Yaqoob, a native of Johari Bazaar who was seen enjoying the festival with his friends in the afternoon.

Things including feeni, gajak, til ke laddu, daal ke pakode, kheer remained the breakfast and main course to many who thronged the terrace and were flying kites. “It feels great when my son screams ‘Woh Kata’ while my wife snaps kites,” said Hemant Sharma, a native of Mansarover.

Former Rajasthan chief minister Vasundhara Raje too flew kites.

During the festival many played the role of DJ. The music had all kinds of varieties from melodies of 60s, 70s and 90s of Hindi cinema to Rajasthan and Punjabi folk. In the evening, firecrackers marked the ‘happy ending’ of the festival. Many preferred to capture the scene from the high-rise buildings in the city.