The first ever Medway Mela took place on Saturday October 25 at the Black Lion Leisure Centre in Mill Road Gillingham. The Mela which was a free event was organised by the Medway Gurdwara Council with the support of Cohesion Plus and was funded largely by Awards for All.

Mela’s originate from the Indian Subcontinent and are a celebration of music, food and dance.  Mela’s take place all over the UK, and this was the first ever to take place in Medway.  Highlights at the Mela included performances by Bhangra Superstar Jassi Sidhu who performed tracks from his new album, popular bhangra stars BEE2, Taj-E, Hip Hop Star Maximus, Saheli Dancers who performed Bollywood Dance Fusion, Lethal Soundz Roadshow and the ever popular Four by Four Bhangra Group.

Alongside the performances on stage there were also displays and information available on a wide range of local services including Kent Police, Kent Fire and Rescue, the Environment Agency and the Medway Gurdwara Council as well as food stalls.

Dr. Kulwant Singh, the Chairof Medway Gurdwara Council commented “I am pleased that we have been able to put on the Medway Mela. This has been a long term ambition of the Medway Gurdwara Council.  We are really pleased that the local community came and supported this event.  We have learnt a lot already from the feedback we received and hope that in the future we can develop the Mela so that it can take place outdoors.  We are especially grateful to Awards for All for providing the funding and Cohesion Plus for their help and support in making this Mela happen”

 

Gurvinder Sandher the Director of Cohesion Plus commented “I was pleased to work with the Medway Gurdwara Council on the Mela.  We had a good turnout for the first year and hope we can develop something even bigger in future years”

Here are some photos from the event, please click on the photos to make them larger.