Stage set for International Kite Festival, but no sponsors yet

Mangalore Today News Network

Mangalore, January 2: Thirteen kite fliers from France, America, Australia, England, Indonesia, Japan, as well as several Indian kite fliers will participate in the International Kite Festival, which will be organized on Panambur Beach on Jan 16 - 17 by Team Mangalore, a group of avid local kite fliers.

Sarvesh Rao of Team Mangalore said that ONGC-MRPL had sponsored the International Kite Festival last year. This year, Team Mangalore has been unable to find any major sponsor and is still looking for one. 

 

Sarvesh Rao and Dinesh Holla

 

Artist Dinesh Holla of Team Mangalore said that the organizers of the event will also display special kites 18 ft in height and 10 ft in width illustrating the theme of Bhoota Kola and the culture of Tulunad. Team Mangalore will also display 60 varieties of kites depicting Kathakkali, Bharatanatya, Gajaraja, and Yakshagana themes. 

Holla said that the team, which had created a record kite of height 36 ft, has decided to make it smaller because 4 - 5 people were required to fly it. He said that, although foreign countries possess advanced kite making technology, they lack creativity. For this reason, Indian kites enjoy greater demand in the international market. 

The members of Team Mangalore including Harish Kodialbail and Satish Rao are making the final preparations for the International Kite Festival along with Dinesh Holla, under the able leadership of Sarvesh Rao.