Sankranti festival: Kite business flies high in Hyderabad

Unending rows-and-rows of kites in myriad colours and designs line the shelves of ‘Patang’ shops in the traditional markets of the city

Hyderabad: With just a week left for Sankranti, the festival synonymous with ‘Patangbazi’ in Hyderabad, hectic business activity is being witnessed in the traditional wholesale markets of old city including Gulzar Houz, Mangalhat, Moosa Bowli and Dhoolpet.

Unending rows-and-rows of kites in myriad colours and designs line the shelves of ‘Patang’ shops in the traditional markets of the city. “As Sankranti draws closer, we are expecting to do more business this year. At present, a lot of retail kite traders are visiting our shops to make purchases. In the coming days, however, groups of youngsters, who indulge in Patang Bazi during Sankranti, will start crowding the shops,” says Arvind Singh, a trader at Dhoolpet.

---

Due to the Covid pandemic, in the last three-years, the kite business in Hyderabad was hit severely. With everybody moving past the Covid pandemic, traders are now expecting a bumper year.

“There was no business during peak Covid. As a result, for the past two to three years, almost all the traders involved in kites have reported significant financial loses. Now things are quite normal and we are looking forward to good business,” says Mohit Singh, another trader.

Many families residing in Dhoolpet make paper kites for a living, while a few varieties are imported from elsewhere. The paper and bamboo sticks are provided by the traders to the craftsmen who make kites in their homes and deliver the finished product to the traders.

At Gulzar Houz, the traders have stocked up traditional kites including the Dulhan patang, Ek kalam, Doh kalam, Anda patang, Zebiya etc. “Kites are usually named according to the design. So a kite with two egg shaped papers affixed on it is ‘Anda Patang’ while a well decorated kite is often called as Dulhan Patang etc,” explained Shoieb, a trader at Gulzar Houz. Traders point out there is no major difference in the prices of kites.