Kite Festival in India – Uttarayan Makar Sankranti 2016

Kite Festival in India : Makar Sankranti 2016

The International Kite Festival takes place in Gujarat India. The festival is called Uttarayan. The festival is celebrated in many cities of Gujarat and Rajasthan like Ahmedabad, Jaipur, Udaipur,Jodhpur, Surat, Vadodara, Rajkot, Nadiad. However, the International Kite Event takes place in Ahmedabad (Kite capital of Gujarat) which accommodates visitors from many international destinations.

The best place to enjoy this festival is the Sabarmati Riverfront (its sabarmati river bank with capacity of over 500,000 people) or the Ahmedabad Police Stadium, where people lay down to see the sky filled with thousands of kites.

During the festival week the markets are flooded with kite buyers and sellers. In the heart of Ahmedabad, there is one of the most famous Kite markets - Patang Bazaar, which during the festive week opens 24 hours a day with buyers and sellers negotiating and buying in bulk.

Moreover, many families in Ahmadabad start making kites at home and setup small shops in their own homes.

There is also a Kite Museum, which is located at Sanskar Kendra in Paldi area of Ahmedabad. It was established in 1985, which has a numerous collection of unique kites.

However in Delhi and other parts of India also celebrates Kite festival. In Delhi 15 August and in Bihar's most of the districts 14 April. It is said because they just prepare new crop wheat. People are offer pray, eat Sattu [ made from new crop wheat ] and new mangoes (baby mango also known as "Tikola). People use to worship with Aam ka Pallo.

Kite Festival in Gujrat

Every year, Gujarat celebrates more than 2,000 festivals. The International Kite Festival (Uttarayan) is regarded as one of the biggest festivals celebrated. Months before the festival, homes in Gujarat begin to manufacture kites for the festival.

The festival of Uttarayan marks the day when winter begins to turn into summer, according to the Indian calendar. It is the sign for farmers that the sun is back and that harvest season is approaching which is called Makara Sankranti. This day is considered to be one of the most important harvest day in India. Many cities in Gujarat organize kite competition between their citizens where the people all compete with each other. In this region of Gujarat and many other states, Uttarayan is such a huge celebration that it has become a public holiday in India for two days. During the festival, local food such as Undhiyu (a mixed vegetable including yam and beans), sesame seed brittle and Jalebi is served to the crowds. Days before the festival, the market is filled with participants buying their supplies. In 2012, the Tourism Corporation of Gujarat mentioned that the International Kite Festival in Gujarat was attempting to enter the Guinness World Records book due to the participation of 42 countries in it that year.

Kite Festival Jaipur : Jaipur Makar Sankranti

Jaipur is the land of fairs and festivals. Always dipped in the colours of festival, this place enchants anyone who experiences the glory of fests. Festival of every religion is celebrated with same zeal and gusto. Each festival has its importance, be it welcoming a season, bidding adieu to a season, wishing long life and good health of the spouse, praise the Lord, worship trees and animals in the form of God. These festivals are integral part of the lives of people of Jaipur. One can not only feel the liveliness of people during these festivals, but can even get a wide exposure of culture of Rajasthan. 

These fairs and festival offer you with a holistic view of the heritage and art of Rajasthan. A prominent one out of the festivals of Rajasthan is the Kite Festival. Certainly, it's a festival that is unique in its own way. The colourful kites hovering over whole of Rajasthan brighten up the skies. This festival is largely celebrated in Jaipur and Jodhpur. The kites-with-lights flown add to the fancy of the festival. If you like kite flying, this is the festival for you. How about visiting Jaipur during this festival? Know more about this festival before you catch up with the delight of this festival in Jaipur.

Significance
Kite festival of Jaipur is observed on the day of Makar Sankranti or Uttarayan. Celebrated on 14th of January to mark the transition of the sun from dhanu rashi (Sagittarius) to makara rashi (Capricorn), the day is considered auspicious. It is said that Uttarayan or northward journey of the sun begins on the day of Makar Sankranti.

Rituals And Celebrations
The people of Jaipur, on this day take a holy dip in Galtaji, an important pilgrimage in Jaipur. They pray to sun god to bless them with good health, wealth and good crop. On this occasion, the pink city turns all colourful with the beautiful kites in the sky. Makar Sankranti is a government holiday in Jaipur, and it undoubtedly increases the pleasure of the festivities. Shopkeepers keep their shops shut, banks remain closed and everybody gets engrossed in kite flying on this day. Various kite flying competitions are also organised by numerous Kite Clubs in the month of January. State government even organises "International Kite Festival" in Jaipur for a stretch of three days wherein kite lovers from all over the world come and participate.

Food
The people of Jaipur celebrate this festival of Makar Sankranti with various sugary delights made of sesame seeds i.e. Til Ke Laddu, Gajak (famous Jaipur's Sesame Brittle), and Feeni (famous Jaipur sweet made of fibres).

History of Makar Sankaranti : The symbolism of this festival is to show the awakening of the Gods from their deep sleep.