“Kai Po che”
Is echoed in every corner, every nook and evokes memories of childhood where we ran across the terrace trying to trace the kites that were falling off the sky. This is the week of Uttarayan and in Gujarat, ‘Kai Po che’ ie. ‘I have cut’ is used with reference to kites. Friends, neighbours, and strangers battle one another and the sound of victory echo in the air when someone cuts the line of a rival.
The term Uttarayana is derived from two different Sanskrit words “uttara” (North) and “ayana” (movement) thus indicating a semantic of the northward movement of the Earth on the celestial sphere.
We were invited to experience this and more(more will be coming later) and thought it would be worth sharing with you all. The festival was inaugurated by the Governor of Gujarat and the energy of the place was unbelievable.
Gujarat Tourism organizes an International Kite Festival where it invites International kite fliers from across the world. This year the festival is being celebrated between 8-14th of January spread across 14 cities with over 31 countries participating in it. 186 kite fliers of which 51 were from across India and the rest were International kite fliers from across the world. Argentina, Australia, France, Brazil, Belgium, Cambodia, Canada, Estonia, Germany, Indonesia, Israel, Italy, Korea, Macau, Malaysia, Netherlands, New-Zealand, Poland, Russia, Singapore, Spain, Sri Lanka, Switzerland, Thailand, Turkey, the U.K, the U.S.A and Vietnam are some of the countries that participated in the festival. I talked to many of them and all had one common take back, the size and the zest of this festival celebrated in India is uncomparable to their own country and imagine the kind of tales they carry back with them.
International kite flier from Lutvania
In the spirit of Uttarayan – Kite fliers interacting with the crowd
A local artist performing at the Inaugural ceremony
There was also a craft bazaar showcasing the works of the local artisans and we could not help but shop from most of these stalls. The pricing and the product were both irresistible š and I couldn’t help myself.
photo credit: Feet on the map
Over 2000 students from schools run by the Ahmedabad Municipal Corporation performed the Surya namaskars, marking the opening of the kite festival and promoting yoga as a very essential part of our cultural heritage.
School kids ready to perform Suryanamaskars
Just to give you a short glimpse of the festival, we have made a short video for you;
Did you know?
There is a scientific reason for flying kites on Makar Sankranti. For many years people fly kites in the early hours of the day when sun rays are not harsh. The morning sun rays provide necessary vitamin to our skin and body and help us combat infections.
There is a show and then there is backstage and we always like to see what the backstage of these celebrations holds, as most wonderful stories come from there. Let’s take you on a photo walk through the streets of Jamalpur neighbourhood where the local kite market prevails through generations.
Kai Po Che: A Walk In the Streets Of Ahmedabad(Jamalpur neighbourhood)
Local kite market in Ahemdabad
This girl’s family has been making kites across generations
This lady is a local ‘manjha’ maker and it’s people like her that sometimes show us the flip side of the coin. Use of glass powder in the ‘manjha’ has bruised her hands brutally. She was proud of her work and not a sense of pity or remorse for the work she does.
A local kite shop
A kite owner whose entire family is into kite making and has been doing so for generations. He gave us insights on how the bamboo sticks come all the way from Assam and how the younger generation was not interested in the profession anymore.
These are some of the stories of the 300-odd households living in the JamalĀpur area of Ahmedabad, where kite making and selling has developed into a cottage industry and the industry, hold your breath is a multi-crore business and is only cited to grow further. I am left in awe of the endless possibilities.
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Love how you have begun with the “Kai Poh Che” theme and interwoven the story with minute details. While I had heard of the song, I never realized the meaning of the song. Thanks for sharing Prerna š
Wow..A good insight into something I didn’t know.
Thanks Lakshmi. It’s a lovely festival
Amazing, the way you have narrated the Kai po che story culminating in the scientific reasoning.
The pictures were a visual treat.
Thanks Sanjay. The festival was so colorful that it deserved a colorful post.
A very insightful article with beautifully captured pictures. The Kite Festival is an amazing event filled with colors and you have captured in your pics all the vibrant colors so well.
Amazing post:) you look lovely in the attire, Kai po che looks a fun event , would love to visit once if i get a chance. Loved the video too š Amazing work Prerna.
I never know they had a scientific reason for flying kites! That makes complete sense though. I love your pictures by the way!
You made me nostalgic. I remember, totally. Those Snakranti days when we would go flying kites, cutting each other’s ropes and turning it into a fun competition. But i didn’t know of the scientific reason behind it. Thanks for sharing that
Kite festival is making a lot of news this year, thanks to the Gujarat Tourism initiative. Gujarat is one of my most favourite states to travel to this year.. I particularly love the Gujarati cuisine and culture. Rann of Kutch is an all time favourite.
I myself used to fly kites when I was a child but never knew that it is celebrated in our country on such a scale and more interesting is to know so many participants from so many different countries. you look beautiful and those kites picture is so colorful. First time I understood the meaning Kai Po Che. Thanks for sharing.
Seems like this was a great experience, I hope you enjoyed the festival. Looking at pictures of children with kites actually reminded me of my childhood in Indonesia. Great post!
What amazing colors, everything looks so beautiful. It seems like such wonderful fun, we’d really like to attend. And of course the food would be amazing!
I haven’t been to a kite festival outside of the US so I would love to see how other cultures celebrate. This festival sounds like a great way to experience the fun of kites, as well as learn about kite making.
Thats cool that the kite festival attracts people from around the world. Kite flying is pretty hard to do in my experience. I’ve only been to a small kite festival before back in Canada.
i am from punjab and kite festivals are very colourful and lot of fun. didn’t know about Ahmedabad. Good post and lovely pictures
Gujarat has a whopping multi-crore kite industry, need I say more :)?
The Kite festival just looks so beautiful and vibrant. A welcome change from the Rann of Kutchch. How much are the kites sold for? Love your large photographs.
These kites start from 50,000 INR. Yes, I was shicked too when I heard the price.
Love the colourful photos! I have tried kite flying as a child but it was a loss less sophisticated kite and much much less beautiful! What a great tradition š
Such wonderful portraits! Oh, I’m in love! Each one tells such a unique story. Loved learning about the kite making festival, this looks like it was really enjoyable :)!
Thanks for sharing such wonderful story about Kai Po Che. I’m afraid I was not able to fly a kite once in my life – how sad is that! Anyway, I like how you captured the colorful kites here. I also appreciate your writing on how we even fly kites. Now I learned something new!
Thanks, for your appreciation Monica.
Wonderful nostalgic post for me. I used to witness them regularly when I used to live in Gujarat. It has been a while and this is done in other places too. However, not quite the same as in Gujarat.
I would love to see the Kite festival once. Here down in the south, we do not fly kites on Makara Sakranti. I never knew that Kai Poi Che meant ‘I have cut’.
Amazing photos! So beautiful and so much color. It looks like an amazing festival. The kite making sounds super interesting, I’ve never made one but it sounds really fun!