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The Kite Runners

January 13, 2025 15:06 IST

Falling on Tuesday, January 14, 2025, Lohri and Makar Sankranti are celebrated with great joy, often marked by the tradition of kite flying.

Lohri, celebrated primarily in Punjab and northern India, marks the end of winter and the harvest of rabi crops.

Makar Sankranti is kite-flying day in Gujarat, Rajasthan and Maharashtra.

The International Kite Festival is held in Gujarat during this time.

IMAGE: Kite enthusiasts fly kites during the International Kite Festival in Ahmedabad, January 12, 2025, here and below. Photograph: Amit Dave/Reuters

 

Photograph: Amit Dave/Reuters

 

IMAGE: A glimpse of the International Kite Festival 2025 at the Sabarmati riverfront in Ahmedabad. Photograph: ANI Photo

 

IMAGE: A tourist with her kite during the Kite Festival. Photograph: ANI Photo

 

IMAGE: Gujarat Chief Minister Bhupendra Patel writes on a kite with a political message during the International Kite Festival 2025. Photograph: ANI Photo

 

IMAGE: People shop for kites on the eve of Lohri in Amritsar. Photograph: ANI Photo

 

IMAGE: Women and children shop for kites. Photograph: ANI Photo

 

IMAGE: A child goes through a collection of kites. Photograph: ANI Photo

 

IMAGE: A shop busy selling kites. Photograph: ANI Photo

 

IMAGE: A child pleased with his collection of kites. Photograph: ANI Photo

 

IMAGE: People buy kite thread (manjha). Photograph: ANI Photo

 

IMAGE: A worker prepares manjha. Photograph: ANI Photo

 

IMAGE: People shop ahead of Lohri in Samba, Jammu. Photograph: ANI Photo

 

IMAGE: A shopkeeper shows a kite at a kite shop ahead of Makar Sankranti in Nagpur. Photograph: ANI Photo

 

IMAGE: Colorful kites on sale. Photograph: ANI Photo

 

IMAGE: What kite shall I buy? Photograph: ANI Photo

 

IMAGE: A shopkeeper displays manjha. Photograph: ANI Photo

 

IMAGE: Girls fly kites during the Jeevan Kite River Festival on the bank of the Brahmaputra in Guwahati. Photograph: ANI Photo

 

IMAGE: Babasaheb Dhone Chitrakala Mahavidyalay students in Akola paint their faces ahead of Makar Sankranti. Photograph: ANI Photo

 

IMAGE: Students from the Radhadevi Goenka College for women in Akola fly kites. Photograph: ANI Photo

 

Photographs curated by Manisha Kotian/Rediff.com
Feature Presentation: Aslam Hunani/Rediff.com

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