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PrintDate Submitted: August 31, 1998
Article Type: Journal
You have to forgive me; every time I pick up a book by Tal Streeter, before reading a word, I turn first to the photographs. I followed this prescription for success with, "A Kite Journey through India" and knew that this was book to rival Streeter’s, "The Art of the Japanese Kite". A glance at the book’s portfolio of show kites dispelled the notion that all Indian kites were the same, and the intricate geometric paper cuts inspired the patchworker buried within me. Other photos gave other clues to the treasures held inside: "Rooftop flying in Ahmedebad", "Kite looters use long poles to reach for failing kites," "Shop entrances festooned with kites and kite reels," and, ever present, "the kite smile from Ahmedebad’s streets and rooftops." My own kite smile grew as I began to devour this book.
Tal Streeter is a writer of quiet adventure, of journeys that motivated by an object-the kite-and pursued by his curiosity. This journey through India is an adventure that takes the reader into shops, homes, and onto kite fields to experience India’s kite culture. Many Westerners have heard of the kite flying in Ahmedebad and Streeter wastes little time in taking his readers there. A trip to the kite market in the City of Four Threads(gold, silk, cotton, and manjha) gives insight into the serious sport of kite fighting. While kite penches (tangles) occur overhead, buyers crowd the small streets stalls and negotiate prices for the finest kites. A child "is taught to be a discriminating buyer, testing the balance and evenness of the lateral ability of the kite, bowing the kite between his hands to ensure that it bends in a graceful, even arc." On this day’s journey, Streeter follows the city’s manjha thread and describes the manjha-making marketplace as well. the vibrant colors of this lethal paste, the graceful twists of finished line, and the ingenious methods of applying paste to line are memorable visual and verbal images.
The journey into the kite culture of India brings us personalites as well. We Bushad Kumar, a man so kite-crazy that his wedding was delayed while he flew kites on his rooftop;Jaswant Singh, who describes tukal kite flying in Punjab; and Bhanu Shah, flyer, collector, and organizer of the Ahmedebad Kite Museum. Bhanu Shah is the true patang gela, a passionate kite-crazy, who, from humble beginnings, has collected thousands of kites and whose dream of establishing a kite museum came true in 1985. the Ahmedebad Kite Museum, housed in the city’s Cultural Center, features the kites of India’s prominent kite cities: Baroda, Surat, Jaipur, Jodhpur, Bareilly, Lucknow, Agra, Mathura, and Ahmedebad. It is compelling to read of the exchanges and the bond between two men-Streeter and Shah-who have so influenced contemporary kite culture.
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