E-Paper
Kat on a kite
Kites with images of celebs are selling like hot cakes as a run-up to I-Day celebrations.
This Independence Day, Bollywood siren Katrina Kaif is for sale. She can be all yours — head to toe — for a mere Rs 25. Kites with images of celebs are selling like hot cakes as a run-up to I-Day celebrations. “I’m selling hundred kites a day,” says Shekhar Gola, a wholesale kite-seller at Mata Sundari Road. “The season lasts from Independence Day to Rakhi, and I promise you that my stock will be sold out by the end of it.”
So, what’s new this season? The best-selling kite is… well, the biggest blockbuster of 2009. “I’m already out of stock of 3 Idiots kites,” says Gola. “It’s not just the bachha log, but their parents, too, are also asking for it.” This kite has Aamir Khan, Madhvan and Sharman Joshi staring at the buyer with a cheeky smile. The big kite-flying bazaars are in Sadar Bazaar, Chawri Bazaar and Okhla. Most kites, unless they are very large or fancy, come as cheap as R 2.
While the markets are also selling Mahinder Singh Dhoni and AR Rahman kites, the second and third favourites are Mahabali Khali and Salman Khan.
The female stars are also doing their best to tempt kite-fliers. The life-size figures of Katrina Kaif sway in the August wind as passers-by gawk at her; while Kareena Kapoor seduces in her Chameli-era red saree. And yes, lest we forget, there are Tiranga kites, too, for R 15 each.
