6 movies that highlight the essence of Makar Sankranti!

Makar Sankranti is just round the corner, and watching movies that celebrate this festival is the perfect way to kick start the festivities with your family and friends!

Bollywood and Indian festivals are a never ending love story. The two bring out the best out of each other. You sure can trust a Bollywood film to get the beats of a festival right and make it look so grand and magical on-screen. Because of the COVID-19 pandemic and the multiple lockdowns over the past two years, kids today don't seem as hyped about festivals as we did back in the day. And we don't blame them given how they haven't witnessed the essence of most of these festivals. Thankfully, movies totally are playing a key role in promoting festivals like Makar Sankranti where after watching mega stars like Shahrukh Khan and Salman Khan celebrating the festival with such energy, their contagious vibe is passed on to the rest of us as well. 

The farmer’s first harvest of the year is why we celebrate the festival and our country has such diverse ways of celebrating it. In the south they celebrate it in the form of Pongal, in Punjab they call it Lohri, and in Gujarat, they widely celebrate it as Makar Sankranti. But the feeling behind it is all the same. In Maharashtra we say ‘tilgul khaa aani god god bola’ which means eat tilgul (sesame ladoos) so you have only good things to say. It’s the one day we see kites of different colours flying in the sky and everyone gathered on the terrace for kite flying competitions, clicking pictures and having a fun time together! So at the end of the day, the first festival of the year is all about love, colour, food, positivity and diversity. 

Also Read: These chefs share special recipes for Makar Sankranti

These movies bring out the true meaning of this festival so beautifully!

Raees (Google Play Movies & TV)

As the movie is based in Gujarat, it highlights the cultural aspect of it. Even though Shahrukh Khan’s character is a don dreaded by everyone, he still believed in celebrating festivals with the whole society. The song ‘Udi Udi Jaaye’ became an extremely popular song from the movie and narrates the love story of the two protagonists with the backdrop of Makar Sankranti.

Hum Dil De Chuke Sanam (Prime Video)

An iconic movie made by the ace filmmaker Sanjay Leela Bhansali, this one portrays a story of a Gujarati family. The song ‘Dheel de de re bhaiyya’ has a kite flying competition between the men and the women of the family and how enthusiastically everyone celebrates the festival. Definitely one of the best songs to play during Makar Sankranti.

Kai Po Che (Netflix)

The name of the film itself is taken from a term used widely during the festival. Kai Po Che is a phrase in Gujarati that's used when you win in the kite flying competition. There’s a song called Manja in the film that is dedicated to the festival. It talks about how to rebuild faith in life.

Patang (Prime Video)

Apart from just the title, the story shows the eagerly awaited kite flying festival that happens every year. The film narrates the extraordinary journey of six people during India's largest kite flying competition in Uttarayan. A thriving businessman from Delhi decides to take his daughter home to show her his roots. 

Yeh Khula Aasmaan (Google Play Movies & TV)

Yeh Khula Aasmaan is another film in which kites play a major role. Avinash is poor in academics and finds it hard to cope with pressure. When he visits his grandfather, he finally finds his safe space. His grandfather used to be the best flier of kites in his youth so he teaches Avinash how to fly kites as well and in the process of that imparts wise words on life too.

Earth 1947 (Voot)

The song where Aamir Khan teaches Nandita Das kite flying and the subtle romance that brews between them beautifully captures the essence of the kite flying festival.

Are you ready to watch these movies with your family? Let us know your favourites in the comments below!

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