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www.dahanu.com
Dahanu - A town by the sea
A hobby come true
Kites! All of us know about this word. And most of us may have done kite flying too. Yet, how much do we know about the kites and kite flying? Perhaps only the basics.
I was deeply interested in making and flying traditional Indian fighter kites since my childhood. I was so possessive about my kites that I would not let any body including my brothers and sisters to touch or fly them. I was always in search of a place to hide my kites from their prying eyes. I used to hide my kites behind cupboards, under the sofa, in the garage and in the car's dickey. I also use to take my kites with me to school only to hide them sometimes behind the classroom cupboards and in the cycle parking area, and then bring them back after the school hours. Needless to say that I sometimes used to be punished too for bringing kites to school. I used to forget food, home work, movies for kite flying. Even in my sleep I used to dream about kites, to an extent, many times disturbing my grandfather's sleep in the middle of the night!
In the year 1993, my son Nisarg and daughter Shrusti made a unique demand for kites in the shape of Superman, birds and airplanes making me wonder what to do. I searched the markets in Mumbai, Surat and Ahmedabad but could not find any of these kites. Then one day my wife Aarti suggested me that since my drawing was good and I also had the passion for kites as a child, why not I myself make such unique kites for our children. I straight away took to her advice and started making such kites. And every weekend we then used to fly these kites on the shores of the Dahanu beach.
At the festival I was amazed to see so many varieties of beautiful and colourful kites from different parts of the world. Eager to learn more about these beautiful kites, I approached an American Kiteist to teach me. But he tauntingly told me that I cannot make such kind of kites because they require special skills, materials and money to build them. I felt insulted. I shot back and told him that we Indians may not have funds or high tech materials for kite making but in talent we are second to none in any field of challenge. I also challenged him saying that in three years time I shall make all the different designs and types of the kites available in the world using locally available material in India.
What began as a single man's enthusiasm since childhood has today blossomed into a full-fledged activity with wide ranging dimensions over the years. My enthusiasm for this unique sport is shared by my son Nisarg, daughter Shrusti, wife Aarti and other family members. It also attracted like-minded kite buffs among my relatives and friends. This gave birth to 'Shrusti Kite Club, Team Dahanu' and 'Nisarg Designer Kites' in 1994. Since then I devoted myself seriously to the art of kite making and kite flying and started experimenting on various designs and forms of kites. Till date I have made and flown over 200 different designs of kites from around the world, from 1-inch to India's longest, 200 feet King Cobra kite (shown bove) weighing seven kgs. on January 04, 2007.
My passion for kite designing and flying has led me to experiment with innovative materials, ideas and forms. The main features inspiring me are colourful birds, butterflies, insects, reptiles, animals, cartoon-characters, airplanes and spaceships. Each kite is designed and handcrafted appliqué work made of rip-stop nylon, carbon and fiber glass rods, aluminum, bamboo,thermocol, leaves, paper dish, paper napkins, nylon cloth and plastics. I have also made world's First Artifical Diamond Studded Kite. By the grace of God, and my well-wishers I have won many prizes, honours and accolades in the National and International Kite Festivals and Private Kite Shows. My aim is to represent India in the International World Cup Kite Festival and make my country proud!
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