“I’ve been selling kites for the last 45 years. My grandfather used to make kites and it continued among the later generations as well. We mostly stick to the traditional designs when it comes to paper kites. This has been our family business for more than 100 years now.
Apart from kite making, we are also into Ganesh Murti making.

If all my family members work together, we can make anywhere between 200 kites and 250 kites in a day. Due to a decrease in the business over the last couple of years, many of our neighbours have switched over to other trades.

We usually get the raw material and paper rolls from Ahemdabad and Indore. It is from us that the kites move to retail shops in the city. From 2 rupees, the prices of these kites can go as high as Rs 200. The cost of paper kites and quality is higher than that of plastic ones that are made in factories. However, the majority of people look for plastic varieties as they are sold at cheaper rates.

People don’t really understand the hard work that goes into this. For the last two years, due to the ongoing Covid-19 pandemic, there has been no business for us. At present, our business is almost down by 50%. I only hope I sell the remaining kites to carry something positive out this year! A very Happy Sankranti to you all!”