Kite Festival Rajasthan

Rajasthan is a land of fairs and festivals that are celebrated with an equal amount of zest and fervour, giving wide exposure to the culture of Rajasthan. One such festival which brings the best of Rajasthan is the Kite Festival which is widely celebrated in Jaipur, Jodhpur and Bikaner. Celebrated on the occasion of Hindu festival Makar Sankranti, Kite Festival is typically celebrated to mark the end of winter and arrival of summers in India. It takes off with a lot of fun and frolic involving majorly kids and youths. The terraces, verandas, balconies and open grounds are thronged by people in huge numbers.

Some fly kites for fun, some for competition while others gather to team up and cheer for their favourite team. The pleasures of fun-loving rivalry and outdoing each other are worth experiencing once in a lifetime. Evenings look much prettier as locals depart lit kites in the sky which makes the entire place look exuberating. On the other hand, music, dance, and sweets, which form an important part of any Indian festival add up to the entire excitement. While people enjoy music and dance throughout the festival, families are seen preparing festival sweets which are then distributed to neighbours and relatives as a tradition. Festivals are known to unite locals and families and Rajasthan’s Kite Festival is true representation of this.

Dates of the festival: Kite festival is celebrated for three days starting from 14th January on the occasion of Hindu festival Makar Sankranti.

Special highlights of the festival:

• The festival is celebrated on a huge scale in Jaipur, and it is called International Kite flying festival.
• The state tourism department organizes this festival in Jaipur Polo ground, where competitions are held and various prizes are given away.
• There are various clubs and communities where this sport gets ardently practised before the festival.
• Such is the popularity of this festival that the state tourism declares a public holiday. Schools and shops remain closed, and people are geared up to welcome the festival.
• Indian sweets made during this festival are prepared with sesame seeds and some of the popular ones are Til ladoo, Sesame brittle, ghevar etc.