The 9th Dartford Community Mela Festival takes place on Saturday August 13 between 2.30pm and 6.30pm in Central Park.

The Mela which is organised in partnership by the Kent ECC (Equality Cohesion Council) and Cohesion Plus with the help and support of Dartford Borough Council, Arts Council England and local community groups. The Mela celebrates the diversity of the borough through music, food and dance.

This years Mela showcases a number of local acts including Arminder Nahal, Jai Khan as well as leading urban Bhangra pop act PBN. The Mela will be headlined by the biggest Bhangra act in Europe Jazzy B who will be performing in Dartford for the first time.

Jazzy B commented “I am currently in Vancouver filming a video for my new album. I am flying in just before the Mela and it is an event I have heard a lot about and am really looking forward to performing there. It is important to hold free festivals like this where artists like me can showcase our music to all the diverse communities who live in the Dartford area.”

Alongside the performances on stage there will also be displays and information available on a wide range of local services including Kent Police, Kent Fire & Rescue Service and Hope Group.

Gurvinder Sandher who has organised the Mela commented “I am pleased that this year we have organised our biggest Mela to date. We have been fortunate to have secured as the headline act Jazzy B who is a big following all around the world. I hope that the communities of Dartford will come out and support this free event. In addition to the stage programme there will be food stalls, information stands and a funfair. This will be a truly family event. None of this would have been possible without the help and support of Arts Council England. These are a wide range of styles of music and dance which will hopefully appeal to everyone who attends the event”