Flying fishes crossed with menacing black bats. Giant butterflies raced with Winnie the Pooh. Spiderman playfully chased eagles in the sky. It was a bright sunny morning on the 12th of February – a clear indication to Bangaloreans of the receding winter and the descent of the colourful spring time. Welcome to Galipata Time! – A morning with kite flying & traditional games.

The day started with enthusiastic children with their parents in tow, crowding around the stall of colourful kites, picking and choosing their favourite ones ranging from the traditional paper-based ones, shiny silver ones to the more sturdy plastic theme-based ones. After a little bit of trial and error, the “kiters” quickly got into the groove. And soon the cheerful, colorful forms dotted the sky.

After a few hours of pure fun in the sun, it was time to sit in the shade and play the traditional, indoor, games from long ago. While elders got nostalgic and smiled at fond memories, children looked at then with fresh eyes and thoroughly enjoyed playing games from Kavade (A Niche Toy Hive) – like Pachchisi, Pallanguzhi, Navakankari, Chaukabara etc. In no time, they got deeply involved and interested – trying to master the nuances and “levels” of the games, they had only so far, heard about from their grandparents. It just went to show that though times change, it just cannot wipe out the charm of golden oldies!

Finally where there are children around, can food be far behind? There were food stalls like The Green Pantry (We Think Green & Use Brown!)icecream, corn, etc to keep the spirits high. At the end of the day, everyone who walked out had a kite or more in one hand, a game in the other and a smile on their face! May more such events happen!

The event was organized by Namma Bengaluru Foundation and Citizen Matters. ApnaComplex sponsored the the traditional games for all the children.