A team that comes up in flying colours
Team Mangalore- the makers of kites that could challenge anybody’s imagination. The catalysts, who changed the definition of kite from a diamond shaped paper cut out to massive, splendid and colourful venture. Bhakti V Hegde writes on the making of Team Mangalore.
Kites have been an integral part of Indian culture. They have not just been a favourite game and pastime in most of the Northern states of the country but it has often been a symbol of celebration and expression of happiness.
Taking the Indian flavour of kites across the border is Team Mangalore, a humble group of kite flyers who have bagged laurels to India because of their unique kites across the world.
Formed in 1992 by a passionate kite flyer Sarvesh Rao, the group christened itself as Team Mangalore in 1996. Today the group has five active members- Sarvesh Rao (the founder), Prashanth Upadhyaya (the technical brain), Dinesh Holla (the artistic hand), Nithin Shetty and Giridhar Kamath (the communicators and next move planners). Apart from them, there are about 12 members in the team who support the team.
Unlike the humble beginning, today Team Mangalore is a brand by itself, which focuses mainly in taking India flags high in foreign skies.
The starting of the team itself was fascinating. Sarvesh Rao, a Mangalorean who lived in Bhadravati for many years had great love and passion for kites because as a kid, kites were his only friends. When he came to Mangalore as a school boy, he found that kite flying was hardly known among the masses. He used to fly kites all by himself during his leisure time. Many years later, as a young man, during one of his treks with Youth Hostel, Sarvesh, happened to fly a kite. This attracted lot of fellow trekkers and from here the building of a team began.
Speaking to City Herald, team member Dinesh Holla said that during the team’s visit to kite festival organised by Janapada Parishat Bangalore, they saw the kites made by Chikballapur team, which was nowhere near the conventional thought of a kite. “It was huge. We were taken by surprise but it also sparked an idea in our minds. We decided to outdo Chikballapur,” said Holla adding that after Sarvesh’s visit to Gujarat Kite fest as a onlooker, the team conceptualized ‘Kathakali’ and decided to make a kite on the theme.
Soon the team had 36 ft tall kite- ‘Kathakali’ ready. The trial round of flying Kathakali at Panambur beach bagged huge response and this kite made out of ‘ripstop nylon’ and bamboos opened avenues of success for Team Mangalore. The Kathakali entered Limca Book of World Records as the biggest kite in India and soon invitations from prestigious international kite festivals held in the Country started including Team Mangalore as participants. From Gujarat to Udaipur to various places in the country, Team Mangalore left eyebrows raised by its colourful kites portraying local traditions. During these fests, Team Mangalore grabbed attention of international kite flyers who in one way or the other started looking up at Team Mangalore for their creativity and distinctiveness.
Soon, Team Mangalore conquered foreign arenas. Starting from France, England, Canada, Thailand, South Korea, Srilanka, Dubai and Qatar, the team mesmerised every flyer and onlooker with what India had to offer to the world of Kites.
However, due to lack of support from Government, the Team could not make it to Chinese Vifang Kite fest (biggest kite fest in Asia) and to festivals in Australia, Italy and Indonesia, despite the fact that these nations have been extending invitations since several years.
“Some nations send the air tickets. In such case, we can afford to go but certain organisers do not provide air tickets and in that case pooling money on our own, shelling out money to design kites becomes difficult,” says Holla adding that Team Mangalore has been so far running the show by itself and with the help of some generous donors like the ONGC-MRPL.
After Kathakali, Team Mangalore designed kites on ‘Yakshagana’ (Badagu, Thenku, Raakshasa), Durga, Bharatnatyam, Gajaraja and Pushpaka Vimana kites, which they flew at various festivals.
During the recently held Kite Festival in Panambur, most of the international kite fliers, when asked about the best team in the World, unanimously chose Team Mangalore for the only reason that they showcase the culture of the land on a very difficult medium.
True, Team Mangalore does not make cut outs and paint images on the cloth. Each and every shape in their kite is cut artistically, pasted meticulously and then stitched, keeping in mind minute technical bit of weight.
After carving a niche for themselves in a very distinctive field, now Team Mangalore is working on its latest kite- ‘Maharaja and his Durbar’.
No apprehensions because even this will be the best like all other kites and this too will fly high adding to India’s fame.
