Flight of imagination: Go, fly a kite

If you see a swarm of colourful kites invading the sky above the Sonapur labour camp, chances are it's a Friday.

Come the weekend, hordes of workers, mostly Pakistani, ditch their heavy-duty tools for their favourite pastime: kite flying. To them, kite flying is more than a hobby – some expatriates have clocked in decades on the reins of their airborne contraptions.

"It's like a dog-fight between fighter planes," said Mohammad Amin, 55, a veteran kite guru.

"The strings are laced with fine glass and the idea is to cut down as many rival kites as possible," said Amin, president of Sharjah Kite Flying Association, an informal club promoting the hobby for over 20 years in the UAE.

"You'll get hurt if you don't take it seriously."

Indeed, people get slashed to death, or fall off rooftops in Pakistan during Basant, a spring festival, when everyone is out flying kites.

While amateurs stick to peaceful solo flights, hardcore enthusiasts engage in chasing or dodging the closest competitor.

"It's an art," said Dubai team captain Imtiyaz Akhtar.

"Victory depends on how agile your kite is as well as the string's material. A downed kite can be used again after it is made fighting fit," said the Dubai team's vice captain, Mohammad Afzal, who hails from Lahore.

It is not unusual to see enthusiasts tag along their families for a barbeque at the weekly scene.

"The Municipality has never stopped us from flying kites or holding picnics here," said Amin.

Thousands of spectators are expected this Basant taking place near Sonapur on Feb 22.

Fight details

After two contesting strings of two kites knot up, the ‘pilots' manoeuvre wire tension and flight paths to snap their opponent's line. The duel can be over in seconds or drag on, sometimes, for more than 15 minutes, the average timeout call by a referee who then declares a draw. The duo in an intertwined pair get side-by-side and reel in the kites close enough to locate the knot and then cross over to undo the tie.