One of the biggest events of the Nepali diaspora in the UK, Nepali Mela 2016 was held successfully on Sunday at the Kempton Park based in Sunbury-on-Thames in Middlesex, London.
I had attended the first few years of the Nepali Mela back in 2010 and 2011. After few years of gap, I visited the Nepali Mela UK this year. Here’s my photo essay.
You can see a selection of my photos published as a gallery on the BBC and you can see all the photos from the Mela on my Facebook page here.
The 8th Nepali Mela UK took place this year with an aim of celebrating Nepali culture, identity, and pride.
Organised by Tamu Dhee UK in collaboration with the Embassy of Nepal in London, the Mela had the presence of almost eight thousand Nepalis from different parts of the UK.
The event is organised yearly since 2009 with support from several Nepali organisations under the banner of the Tamu Dhee UK.
Pasa Puchah Guthi, that represents the Newa community in the UK, was one among over thirty participating communities in the event.
The mission of Mela is to celebrate Nepali culture and traditions and keep them alive in the UK based Nepali communities – a home away from home.
Dozens of Nepali communities portrayed their culture in different forms of art walking alongside the main stage.
Known as Jhakis, the groups in their different attires showcased their unique arts, crafts, dance or other traditional aspects.
Food stalls, which are mostly crowded all day long, were set up at the Mela to promote the Nepalese cuisine.
Besides, few commercial stalls providing services in Nepali communities were also part of the event.
The event also featured cultural dances from several ethnic groups in the form of a competition.
One such award-winning performance in the competition was from the Lamjung community that presented Sorathi dance, a dance popular in the Gurung communities of Nepal.
Traditional Nepali music and dance are essential to entertaining to most of the audience attending the event.
Involvement of the Youth and their integration in the events has been a major focus of the Mela organisers lately.
A dedicated team is formed to attract the young audience, and musical band performance events have been made part of the Mela to integrate Nepali youths.
Five musical bands were able to take the main stage and entice the young audience present at the event.
Attracting the new generation to be part of the Nepali Mela will be crucial to the organisers in fulfilling their mission of keeping Nepali culture and traditions alive.
The Mela serves as a meeting point for friends and relatives and makes a good day out for families in the British summer.
Calling this Mela as one of the most successful ones, the organisers said they have come a long way since the first Nepali Mela in 2009.
In recent years, the Mela has moved to this new venue with a larger capacity to accommodate the ever growing participation of Nepalis and the communities.
Let us know what you think of Nepali Mela in the comments below.