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Journalism of Courage
Dedicated to the sun god, the harvest festival of Makar Sankranti is celebrated across the country to mark an important turning point in the astronomical and agricultural cycles as it denotes the coming of spring. Flying kites, preparing traditional sweets, and taking holy dip in rivers form an integral part of the celebrations.
Across India, kite flying competitions are held on this day. However, the kite flying fanfare continues much after the day itself has passed, and there is a reason why.
According to tradition, winter is the season which is associated with illness and disease. Therefore, on Makar Sankranti, as the calender sets into spring, large groups of people would bathe in the sun to kill germs and bacterias. Flying kites while sunbathing slowly became a tradition to make this activity more exciting.
However, some also believe that flying kites during Makar Sankranti might have deeper conotations. An alternate belief suggests that kites flying into the skies serve as an awakening alarm for the gods who had been resting throughout winter. Another belief associated with this is that the kites serve as thanksgiving symbols to the gods as they breach into the heavens above.
Over the years, the tradition of flying kites has been taken very seriously. In places like Gujarat, flying kites and competing with others is regarded as one its biggest festivals. Scores of people from not only around the country, but across the world, come to participate in the annual International Kite Festival (Uttarayan), the preparations for which begin months in advance.
Here are some accessories that kitists and the public use during the Uttarayan festival.
The metal guards for two-wheelers
These are made of aluminium fixed to the handlebar with clamps in case one doesn’t want to remove mirrors, or bolt in the groove for mirrors.
Thimble
Kitists wear them on their fingers to avoid getting cuts. they are usually made of silicon or rubber and come in sets of five and last for 2-3 hours. Some kitists also wear medical paper tape or fancy/faux leather gloves around their fingers to avoid cuts.
Neck guards
This protects the neck from kite strings which are sharp and can penetrate the skin easily, causing cuts. here are also scarves and turtle-neck ponchos that people wear. Some also advise wrapping a piece of cloth like a shawl around their neck as a protection measure against kite strings while venturing out.
Caps and sunglasses
To avoid glare from the sun and to be able to see their kites, several kitists use caps and sunglasses. Sunglasses for children is especially popular during kite-flying.
Other fun accessories
Facemasks of animals, joker and rainbow hair, some Halloween masks too, bugles that give out deafening sounds, drums and whistles are sometimes used for fun.
