The World at your Feet at the Edinburgh Mela
THE WORLD AT YOUR FEET AT THE EDINBURGH MELA
The 2009 Edinburgh Mela is running in Pilrig Park, Leith, today and tomorrow (Sat and Sun August 8 and 9) promising a mix of music, dance and visual arts and theatre performances.
The celebrations began last night (Friday) with Sakhian, an event traditionally for women only, before the main events today. Pilrig Park has been transformed into three performance areas: the Big Top and the Garden Stage for music, theatre and dance and film performances and the Forest Workshop Tent, which includes a programme of children's activities across the two days.
Mela director Liam Sinclair said this year's Mela promises to be a fantastic return to Pilrig Park.
"Once again we have drawn on performances from cultures from across the world, including India and Pakistan but also Africa, Nepal and Iran among others. It is clear from this year's programme that multicultural Scotland holds a wealth of performing talent, which combines well with the international acts performing this year.
"The Edinburgh Mela is a family event and Forestry Commission Scotland and Scottish Natural Heritage are supporting our dedicated children's programme this year, while the events long associated with the Mela, including our ladies night to start the event and the fashion show on Sunday are still a popular part of the programme."
Culture Minister Michael Russell said the Edinburgh Mela is a great celebration of Scotland's vibrant culture:
"In the Year of Homecoming, when we are celebrating the contribution that Scots have made across the world, we also celebrate and explore Scotland as a culturally diverse nation. The Edinburgh Mela is a tremendous showcase for performers from around Scotland and across the globe, many of whom have fused a variety of cultural influences to create something unique."
Highlights of this year's Edinburgh Mela are:
- Yatra - journeys home (Sat 12.45pm, Sun 4.15pm) A World Premiere commissioned for Homecoming 2009 that is a musical collaboration between Japanese Taiko Drummers, Scottish musicians, South Asian musicians, Classical Indian dancers from Dance Ihayami and a specially commissioned film involving communities in Glasgow and Edinburgh.
- GOL (Sat 1.45pm and 5pm) Edinburgh based band GOL premieres ‘Mixed Up'. GOL creates a unique sound by crossing musical boundaries between East and West (specifically UK and Iran) informed by jazz, world, pop and electronic with singing in Iranian, Farsi, Arabic and Scottish.
- Anshul Tomer (Sat 12.30pm) Indian pop Idol quarter finalist 2003 is the new voice of Hindi music. He will perform songs from his debut album Baawari.
- Jardu (Sat 2pm and 7.15pm) Andrew Elliot draws on his eastern and western heritage to present a show combining traditional Indian magic with contemporary street theatre. Sword swallowing and snake charming feature.
- Panjabi Hit Squad (Sun 8pm). They have been at the forefront of British-Asian music since 2001 fusing Bhangra with street music.
- Taiko drumming (Sun 12noon) Energetic, physical and highly choreographed, taiko drumming hails from Japan but this is a workshop for those interested in trying the art for themselves. Aimed at children and adults it takes place in the dedicated children's area of the Mela.
- Andrew Lum & New Asia, Sat
and Sun 3.00-4.00pm
Exciting and innovative cross-over music from Singapore that reflects Chinese, South Asian and Western styles. - Mona Singh, Sat 7.15 -
8.00pm
Laying claim to the title ‘Princess of Bhangra', Mona Singh has become one of Britain's most sought after young artists in the business and enjoys one of the highest profiles of any Bhangra personality. - Imran Khan, Sun 7.40-8.10pm
With a huge smash hit under his belt, the Punjabi pop sensation Imran Khan, is today on the path to a long term career. The single ‘Ni Nachleh' was released to see how the industry appreciated Imran Khans style of music.
The popular fashion show returns on Sunday showcasing a collection of ‘East meets West' couture and will be officially opened and compered by Miss Pakistan-Scotland 2009, Uzma Ali from Edinburgh. DJs from this year's official media partner, BBC Asian Network, will co-host the Big Top and send out the beats from a dedicated DJ station wagon parked on site over the weekend. The Mela starts at 12 noon on both Saturday and Sunday with events finishing at 9pm both evenings.
Tickets for the Mela are available online from www.edinburgh-mela.co.uk or can be bought onsite. Saturday and Sunday day passes cost £2 per day which provide entry to all performances on those days. Children under 12 are free.
For more information please contact Shaheena Abbas on 0131 556 0770 or Shaheena.abbas@pagodapr.com
- The Edinburgh Mela Festival was founded in 1995 by members of the city's minority ethnic communities, and one of its key objectives was to reflect and celebrate Scotland's cultural diversity.
- Yatra Journey Home is supported by the Scottish Arts Council National Lottery Fund in celebration of Homecoming 2009. The Scottish Arts Council is a Non-Departmental Public Body (NDPB) which was established by Royal Charter in 1994 and is also a Lottery distributor. The organisation serves the people of Scotland by fostering arts of excellence through investment, development, research and advocacy. Our corporate aims are: to support artists to fulfil their creative and business potential; to increase participation in the arts; and to place the arts, culture and creativity at the heart of learning. We invest £60m each year, including £15 million of National Lottery funding.
- For more information about the Edinburgh Mela Festival please visit www.edinburgh-mela.co.uk
