To learn the fundamentals of the form, Clemens travelled to the Indian states of Rajahstan and Gujarat, where kite-makers have been refining their designs across centuries of intense rivalry and competition.

The traditional Indian kite, the Patang, is a spirited flyer, hand-made from vibrantly coloured tissue papers and bamboo spars, they are flown from rooftops throughout India, often in battles that use glass-coated string to cut down an opponent’s kite.

What makes a good kite?

A good kite is a well balanced kite, it has to be well balanced. When the bow takes the wind when it goes up it should go up, it should not go right or left, it should not wobble in the air, that is a good kite.

Indian kites are famous as fighting kites, can you explain the idea of fighting kites

I don’t know when it started, it was a long time back, during the 15th, 16th century I guess. Kite flying was the hobby of the nobles. Kite fighting makes it exciting, thats how i guess it started. When there is a rival between an neighbour, a friend, when you win, you feel good, it gives you a high. It is like the animal instinct, it doesn’t hurt other people but you still get an ego boost when you cut the kite of an opponent.

What I discovered in Indian kites is it’s the skill of the flyer that makes the kites fly. You have so much control. If you don’t pay attention it will do something else. The fighting must have something to do with demonstrating skill.

I used to do a lot of kite fighting,

There are many kite festivals in India, I went to the one in Ahmedabad, where we met, i’ve never seen a festival so big, it felt like the whole city was flying kites.

In Gujarat the kite festival is held on the 14th of January, it is related with the crossing of the sun, that is how Uttarayan is celebrated.

The kites are made from paper, I saw increasingly kites made from plastic. What I enjoyed is the idea that if a kite breaks and it’s made of paper it returns to its elements, a broken piece of plastic is forever.

We don’t encourage plastic kites, we don’t sell plastic kites because of that reason. But plastic kites are cheaper, it is not good.

CH: What is your first memory of flying a kite?

I was six or seven years old when I started flying kites that I remember, but I have a picture of flying a kite when I was younger that I don’t remember, before memory I was also flying kites.

My father is also a kite flyer. He grew up in North India which has a very popular culture of kites, so he used to talk about kite flying and he introduced me to kites. My father didn’t teach me, I learnt it by watching older kids who were eight or nine years old, they were flying kites on the terraces, everyone would hang out on terraces during the kite flying season.

The first lesson is holding the spool, holding the thread, that’s how you start, you get involved by holding the thread. Then you can take the thread in your hand for a few seconds, that’s how you learn, later the time increases for the handling and it becomes natural, it happens so naturally you don’t even remember how you learnt. My son is four years old, he holds the thread for me right now, if the kite goes out of control I take the thread. He is doing it since last year, so since he was three years old, he won’t remember it, that’s how it starts.

I have photos of my daughter flying kites at three, it’s exactly the same, I would fly the kite and she would hold the string, if it starts to fall I’ll help, now she is six and she can fly a kite by herself.

She won’t remember not flying a kite.

What do you love about flying kites?

It's my meditation. You don’t have any other thoughts in your mind when you are flying a kite. Your mind is free, free of thoughts. Thoughts are always there in my mind, that I have to do this, I have to do that, but while I am flying a kite it is a thoughtless state, something like that. It is a different level, you have to be there, it is a direct connection with nature, you can feel the wind, it feels close to nature in an urban atmosphere.

It was very moving for me to see so many people flying kites in India because it is something I love to do.

It is a great bonding time between the families.

Clemens Habicht is an illustrator, graphic designer and film maker based in Paris France and Sydney Australia. His puzzle, 1000 Colours is in the Smithsonian Libraries collection, Washington, US; and is stocked in MOMA Museum of Modern Art, NYC & San Francisco, US; Design Museum of London, UK; Herman Miller Store, NYC, US. He has directed films for the Sydney Dance Company as well as bands including AC/DC, Bob Dylan, Tame Impala, Flume and Bloc Party which have been screened in the British Film Institute, the Edinburgh International Film Festival and CamerImage Festival. His illustrations have been commissioned by City of Sydney, Sydney Theatre Company and featured in the Creative Review Magazine. He designs and produces art catalogues for museums including the Palais de Tokyo Paris, Secession Museum Vienna, and the Sydney Biennale, and is a director of Galerie Allen in Paris.

Clemens would like to thank all the people who have helped with this project, especially the support of team Play Group; Jeremy Wortsman, Tatanja Ross and Shena Jamieson, the knowledge and experience of Mehul Pandya, and the tireless dedication and enthusiasm of Zeeshan Sharif.