Hyderabad: The Hyderabad skies opened up once again to welcome foreigners, who were in the spotlight at the inaugural of the sixth three-day Telangana international kite and sweet festival at parade ground here on Saturday.
The festival was inaugurated by tourism and culture minister Jupalli Krishna Rao in the presence of transport minister Ponnam Prabhakar.
The event has been growing in popularity with each passing year going by the rising number of ‘competitors’ from abroad, bar during the Covid pandemic.
This year’s edition has the participation of 40 flyers drawn from 16 countries. The foreigners with huge kites in attractive colours are enjoying the winds. People turn up in large numbers to witness the fun and frolic that the festival brings along.
Speaking on the occasion, Krishna Rao said, “along with education, games, songs and recreation activities are important for a child’s overall development. The department of culture is working on formulating a plan towards that. It is presumed that today’s kids are getting entertainment on their mobile phones and forgetting local sports and hence are not keen on kite festivals and other rural festivals.”
Ponnam Prabhakar said, “Kite flying is ideal for one’s health. Apart from getting Vitamin D while flying kites in sunlight, one’s eyesight improves while watching kites flying at a distance.”
Keith, a participant from South Africa, said “I have brought 15 kites. Each is for different weather conditions. This is the third time that I am participating in the event. Hyderabad is one of the best cities that I have been to.”
Donna Taylor from Canada said, “This is my first time in Hyderabad, although I have participated in kite festivals in other Indian cities. The wind conditions are vastly different.”
A major side event is the food festival that is dotted with stalls offering lip-smacking delicacies. More than a thousand different sweet items from across the country will be thoroughly relished.
