International Kite Festival 2024

Every year, the International Kite Festival is organised in Gujarat on the day of Makar Sankranti. During these days of joy, the sky of Gujarat is covered with colourful kites. Kite flyers from around the world gather here to celebrate this rich tradition. 

In 2024, the celebration started on the 8th of January and will continue till the 14th. The Chief Minister of Gujarat, Shri Bhupendra Patel, started the event by releasing tricolour balloons into the sky. 

In Gujarat, 14th January has been announced as a holiday so people can celebrate this day freely. People take part in the game ‘Kite fighting’ where they try to cut down someone else’s kite. To do so the strings of the kites are laced with a mixture of glue and small glass pieces. 

Since 1989, the city of Ahmedabad has hosted the International Kite Festivals. However, this day is celebrated in many other cities of Gujarat and Rajasthan. During the night, lighted kites called ‘tukkals’ are lit and released into the open sky. People from around the world bring their traditional kites to this festival, such as the Malaysian Wau-balang kites, Chinese flying dragons and Italian sculptural kites.