Junoon is the common thread

It does not require the Met Department8217;s verdict of this being the hottest day of the summer, to gauge mercury level. The furnace like atmosphere gives enough evidence as one takes the dusty deserted road on the outskirts of Delhi towards an open field of village Burari.

But the sweltering conditions don8217;t seem a hindrance to an animated group staring at the skies trying to manoeuver a few colourful kites.

These are no village urchins8217; indulging in a summer vacation past time but a serious bunch of grown up fighting for a top prize of Rs 50,000.

It is the All India Kite Flying Championship which has attracted about 120 clubs and the organisers 8211; Delhi Kite Flying Association 8212; are spending Rs 25 lakh on the event. And with ITDC, DDA and Oswal lending support, the final promises to be a gala affair at Red Fort in the presence of cine stars. And with all this data in mind, when one hears the Delhi Kite Flying Association president Ahsanullah Chawla saying that this sport is almost like cricket, all one can do is shake the head.

To emphasise his point, Chawla introduces to a wrinkled face man with long white bread, who is busy checking the balance of an abnormally large kite. The 80-year-old bachelor Ali Nawab Sahab, who hails from the Mecca of kite flying Lucknow, is said to be the Bradman of kites. One of his shagirds disciple, happily rolling the manjha thread between his thumb and little fingers whispers, 8216;8216;Such has been Nawab Sahab8217;s junoon passion for kites, that he never got married.8217;8217;

Talking to this octogenarian one gets a insight about the sport. 8216;8216;Earlier it used to be a past time of the nawabs but today this provides livelihood to lakhs of people,8217;8217; he gives his statement a contemporary twist by adding, 8216;8216;where else can you see today, Hindu and Muslims competing together peacefully?8217;8217;

In fact, Nawab Sahab started a new club in Lucknow 13 years ago, Pakeezah Kite Club, after his first club, Hero Kite Club, was forced to shut down after more than 50 years. He goes on to add that the skills of kite-flying have been passed on from generations and today there are good number of enthusiasts in Lucknow. Said the 49-year-old Mohsin Qureshi, secretary of DKFA, 8220;I learnt the nuances of the game from my ancestors and now my children and nephews have picked it up from me8221;.

Besides Delhi and Lucknow the other main kite-flying centres in the countries are Gwalior, Bareilly, Rampur, Allahabad, Kolkata and Jaipur. Besides this being a small town sport, the other noteworthy aspect of kite-flying is the fact that most enthusiasts hail from the lower and middle section of the society. At Burari one finds a number of shopkeepers who have pulled down their shuttlers to indulge in their passion. For take the case of Sayyid Jafar Raza, a postal department employee from Lucknow, who is on a 15 day leave. 8216;8216;It8217;s difficult to resist the junoon passion and shauk desire for kite-flying,8217;8217; he says.

But a basic question: How exactly the kite-flying title decided? It is a team title which is up for grabs. Each team consists of three members and one extra player. The winner in match between two teams in decided after a 8216;nine tangle8217; contest. There are also three umpires required to conduct each game and the championship is played on knock-out basis. The chances of disputes is quite high as the rules are quite complicated.

However passion is the common thread for the kite lovers. Meet Ajay Tandon, who won the championship title in 1996, and is now preparing for an encore. He said that his kites are Lucknow-made but the manjha thread has been specially prepared in Bareilly. 8220;I practiced for almost two months before this competition so I am hopeful of winning again,8221; said Tandon.

As an after thought one rushes to Nawab Sahab to enquire his tally of titles. The old man merely smiles and says, 8216;8216;Titles don8217;t exactly matter to me, I am happy with the thought of seeing this junoon alive.8217;8217;