Ahmed Qazi's family has been making and selling kites since 1952. Photo Courtesy: Nascimento Pinto
Bandra kite-maker Ahmed Qazi has making and selling kites since 1979, when he joined the business with his father and elder brother. This is 27 years after his grandfather, who came to Mumbai in 1930 from Agra, started the business. Photo Courtesy: Nascimento Pinto
The season for Qazi, fondly known as ‘Ahmed Patangwala’, starts two months before the festival. Earlier, it used to be much longer and started from August 15 but over the years many people have stopped flying kites, and that saddens him. Photo Courtesy: Nascimento Pinto
The kites which come in different shapes and sizes see a huge demand for slum kids over children from bigger houses, according to Qazi, because the latter are more engrossed in their phones. The lack of spaces to fly kites and enjoy the activity is another reason for the decline in kite flying. However, Qazi hasn’t lost hope. Photo Courtesy: Nascimento Pinto
Over the years, he has made kites for many Bollywood films including Salman Khan’s ‘Sultan’, Shah Rukh Khan’s ‘Raees’ and more recently for a scene in the Bollywood superstar’s upcoming movie, ‘Pathaan’. Apart from making them for films, he also caters to the audience’s demands and has made kites with ‘Pushpa’ and ‘Chhota Bheem’ too. Photo Courtesy: Nascimento Pinto
This year, he has already delivered to Powai in Mumbai, as well as Dubai and Singapore to members of the Gujarati community, who he says find kites to be very auspicious. Continuing his family legacy, Qazi doesn’t intend to stop any time soon because it has now become a way of life for him. Photo Courtesy: Nascimento Pinto
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