What is the history of Kite Running?

kite running and flying is much more than a pastime in Afghanistan. Kite running is a national obsession. The streets of the capital, Kabul are filled with shops selling kite-flying equipment, and the skies above are decorated each day. The pastime was originated in Afghanistan. Banned by the Taliban because it is said to be un-Islamic, kite flying has now hit new heights of popularity in the country. Afghans have elevated kite flying or “ gudiparan bazi” to an art form, and id one of its chief attractions kite fighting. During the Taliban kite flying was not allowed. If you flew a kite, the Taliban would beat you up and tear the kite up. The fall of the Taliban in the capital one year ago mean that Afghans could fly kites without punishment. Many Afghans have returned to the pastime with a vengeance. Kite flying is a two person affair. One person the “char gir”, holds the wooden spool around which the wire or tar” is wound. The second person called the “gudiapran baz” or kite flyer actually controls the movement of the kite in the air. In Afghanistan where ever there are kites there is kite fighting. During the fight or “jang” two kites are flown close to one another, often at great heights. The object is to use the wire of your kite to cut the wire of your opponents kite and set it free. When the opponent's kite has been downed, then the real battle turns into a race, the kite run, to see who retrieves the fallen kite. This is symbolic to the 1992 event in Afghanistan when ethno-religious warlords looted and pillaged Kabul and other cities in a race to see who can amass the most booty. Interestingly enough, in 1994 the emerging Taliban regime banned kite flying and an assortment of other activities offering at best a graveyard peace to a conflict-ridden society. People have been flying kites in Afghanistan for more than 100 years. Kites cost from 2,000 afghanis just a few cents. For children no bigger then a magazine 100,00 afghanis less than $2. Large kites are handeled by the most experienced fighters. Afghan fighter kites are similar to the Indian Fighters in that they are made from tissue paper and bamboo. The biggest difference is that they are much larger than the typical Indian fighters. The wing span on an average Afghan fighter kite is 3.5 feet long, some even up to a 5 foot wing span, where most Indian kites run around 1.5 feet on the small kites to 2.5 feet on the large ones. The Afghan kites are always flown on glass coated "cutting" line called Tar in the Afghan language. Most of the flyers make their own Tar, each with his own secret recipe of glue and ground glass. Because of the kite’s size, the line is usually 9 lbs or more, and they think nothing of using all 1000 ft. when fighting, sometimes they even tie on more line while they are flying.