Members of the Trinity community came together to celebrate new beginnings on Feb. 27 at the Intramural (IM) field, as the South Asian Student Association (SASA) hosted its first-ever kite festival.
Members of SASA greeted students and community members at the IM field with lively music and tables full of South Asian cuisine. They encouraged everyone to make a plate and create their own kite, providing blank white kites and markers for decoration.
Kite designs ranged from hearts to butterflies to fish, and even a kite with other miniature kites drawn on it. A crowd-favorite design was a kite plastered with the internet meme “John Pork.” After designing kites, flyers took to the field to try their luck at catching airtime.
Kavni Maniar, SASA president and junior biology major, said that SASA celebrated the kite festival in early spring to commemorate the new harvest and a fresh start. While the Trinity festival was a smaller, laid-back event, Maniar said that many regions of South Asia have their own unique way of celebrating, some more intense than others.
Gujarat, India, where Maniar’s family is from, is known for fierce competition as families strategically maneuver their kites in an attempt to cut others’ strings, accumulating downed kites as trophies. Maniar said she wanted to host the kite festival to bring this part of her life to campus.
“I’ve always loved being in SASA because I feel like I can bring a little part of my culture to Trinity,” Maniar said. “I wanted to celebrate the kite festival because I wanted to celebrate something that is from several parts of South Asia.”
Regardless of regional differences, Maniar said the kite festival is simply held to have a good time. She noted the importance of building community. The festival is a time for family and friends to gather and make memories together, she said.
“It’s just a really fun event where people can sit together, decorate your kites and just have fun,” Maniar said.
Anjai Gupta, junior neuroscience major, attended the festival after seeing it posted on the LeeRoy Daily News. He enjoyed getting his kite up in the air and eating Gobi Manchurian, an Indo-Chinese staple of deep-fried vegetable balls, he said. “It’s fun and whimsical, and they have free food, so it checks all the boxes,” Gupta said.
For those who missed the kite festival, SASA is keeping the celebratory spirit going throughout the semester. They are hosting their biggest event, Holi, on March 20.
