Though only two days are left for Sankranthi, the festival of kites, the iconic Dabeerpura Nala road in old city, synonymous for its ‘manja’ (kite-line) makers, sports a dull picture.
The wooden poles that line up across the stretch do not hold strings anymore. “Where are the buyers?” asks Shaik Bhai, a third-generation manja maker. The 65-year-old learnt the art of making ‘manja’ from his ancestors decades ago and practiced it for at least three decades.
“Orders were placed six months before the festival. But now we do not get orders even a month before,” he bemoans.
The flooding of Chinese ‘manja’ has spelt doom for them.
“Teenagers are no more interested in the local ‘manja’. They prefer the Chinese variety for they can use it for days at a stretch and at a lesser cost,” Nabeel, another ‘manja’ maker says adding that the trade is no more lucrative.
From the past
It was a ritualistic chore for the male members of about 20 families, preparing a mixture of gum, glass and cooked rice in the mornings. The pulp was rubbed against regular thread to give a fine and ‘cutting-edge’ character. But the men don’t do it anymore.
“People from the neighbouring States also visited and placed orders with us. We worked at least eight months a year. Now we ourselves have bought Chinese ‘manja’ and are selling it,” another ‘manja’ maker reveals.
Although it is called Chinese made kite-line, it is made in the northern and central States of India.
Of late, a few traders too are making it in the city, shopkeepers claim. A roll of Chinese ‘manja’ is priced between Rs. 200 and Rs. 500 depending upon the variety and quantity.
