Sea of People Descend on Tannirbhavi Beach for 2 Days to Capture Sight of Kites Roar the Skies
Mangaluru: What a fantastic weekend it was for people who wanted to enjoy fun and frolic-where at Tannirbhavi Beach they could enjoy the varieties of kites during the two-day International KITE FESTIVAL on 10 and 11 February; and on another side far from the City life in the outskirts of Mangaluru, they had close encounters with Man’s Best Friends”- an International Kennel/Dog Show held also on 10 and 11 February at Adyar Gardens.
On Sunday, it was a great sight to see the eight-metre long ‘Ganapati’ inflatable kite of Maharashtra’s Fly 360 Kite Club flying in the middle and being Host of kites featuring Ganapati, Kathakali, cats fill the sky on Tannirbhavi beach. As many as 40 kite flyers, including 13 from eight foreign countries, took part in the 7th edition of the two-day International Kite Festival.
A host of kites featuring Ganapati, Kathakali, and cats filled the sky on Tannirbhavi beach flanked by Kathakali kites of ‘One India kite team of Kozhikode’ and Team Mangalore on either side. kites featuring octopuses, cats, fish, and cartoon characters namely ‘Incredible Hulk’ and ‘Tinkerbell’ also filled the sky. The event is organised by Team Mangalore in association with ONGC-MRPL. The strong wind made it hard for the Ashok Shah-led Fly 360 Kite club from Dahanu to launch the ‘Ganapati’ inflatable kite with ‘Octopus’ as the pilot kite. As the wind started to move across, it was challenging for Shah and his team to adjust the two big kites and launch them within the limited space available at the venue.
Similarly, international kite festival veteran Abdul Rauf and his Mumbai team also faced problems flying their ‘101 butterfly’ train kite and 35-star train kite. The 67-year-old Liannawati Lie and her son Wenas Ongkowinoto from the Art Kite team of Indonesia enjoyed the strong wind and it helped their inflatable kite featuring an 8-metre-long Tinkerbell fly majestically. The team displayed six unique inflatable kites featuring a Lion, Octopus, and other animals. Alex of Ukraine and Nee from Thailand from the Cat Kites team displayed their inflatable kite featuring four cats and a tadpole.
Ali Westhill-led One India kite team from Kozhikode displayed an inflatable kite 35-ft long Kathakali made of cloth. The team also displayed a 25-ft-long cat kite. The team also displayed a 60-diameter ‘Circle’ kite, a ‘Mandra’ show kite and a Duck Kite at the festival. Team Mangalore displayed their oldest and biggest Kathakali kite. It also displayed ‘100 Kathakali’ train kites. A few ‘stunt’ kites, which do manoeuvres in the sky similar to fighter jets, also flew. People purchased kites and flew them along with their children.
The event was formally inaugurated by Health and Family Welfare and Dakshina Kannada District in-charge Minister Dinesh Gundu Rao. He flew kites that had flags of ‘Constitution Preamble’ and of ‘Constitution awareness jatha’. Rao was accompanied by Deputy Commissioner M.P. Mullai Muhilan and Police Commissioner Anupam Agrawal. The logo of the International Kite Festival 2024 depicted the spirit of freedom, spontaneity, and festivity. The colourful kites flying in synergy denote the poised growth of the region in tune with the belief ‘one sky, one earth, one family,’ nurtured by kite flyers from various countries, said Sarvesh Rao of Team Mangalore.
Thirteen foreign flyers from eight countries, including 10 first-time visitors, and around 20 Indian flyers from four states – Maharashtra, Gujarat, Telangana, and Kerala – participated in the festival. Team Mangalore, the organisers, also flew their speciality kites like Kathakkali, Yaksha, Gajendra, Bhoota Kola, Garuda, Pushpaka Vimana, and Vibhishana. This year, Manja kites were banned during the kite festival. Manja is a specially treated thread used for kite-cutting competitions in Gujarat and other northern states. Glass powder and glue are applied to make the manja thread. This thread cuts through the skin and is dangerous for the eyes, face, neck, and fingers, especially for children.
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