History

In the wet and miserable summer of 2006, the clouds disappeared for one special day to let the glorious sunshine through on Wales. This paved the way for one of the most unique events in the history of Cardiff, the first Cardiff Mela. This community and social cohesion event is open to everyone, all ages and all colours and most imporatntly it is a FREE ENTRY event! The 2024 Mela will mark 18 years since the first Cardiff Mela event and will take place on Sunday 23rd June 2024. Previous events have attracted 30,000 visitors in a day and with planning underway, 2024 is set to be bigger and better!

The Mela showcases a wide diversity of cultures, music, dance, arts, fashion and food to name a few. Although the Mela's roots are Asian cultures, this is a festival for all and aims to educate, share and celebrate all cultures.

Overview

30,000 Visitors

The 2024 Mela will mark 18 years since the first Cardiff Mela event and previous events have attracted 30,000 visitors in a day.

Sunday 23rd June 2024

The Cardiff Mela will return to Cardiff Bay on Sunday 23rd June 2024. The event will open to the public at 12 midday and finish at 6pm.

15+ Performers

Over 15 local, national and international artists will take centre stage to entertain all Mela visitors.

Mela Video

Highlights video which will help you understand the Cardiff Mela.

More videos to be uploaded shortly including a full length Mela documentary filmed in 2010.

MAIN STAGE PERFORMERS

Programming for the 2024 event is underway. Below are some of the national and international acts that have taken centre stage at previous Cardiff Mela events. We are privileged again to be working with the BBC Asian Network who have hosted the event annually since 2009. Every year, local singers, musicians and other artists also take centre stage as people from across Wales are invited to take part and perform on the main stage. The Cardiff Mela was formed also to provide a platform for anyone who loves to sing/perform/dance to get involved in the Mela. Cardiff Mela is all about opportunity and is open to anyone of all ages. The organisers are excited to be able to offer the chance to perform new works that have never been heard before and are keen to provide a platform for this. Anyone interested in performing in the Mela can register their details by emailing us.

ACTIVITIES

The Cardiff Mela is more than music, dance, fashion and live performance. Amongst additional activities will include: funfair rides, market stalls, mehndi artists, music workshops, kids activities, face painting, sports workshops and much more!

program
12.00 PM - 6.00 PM MAIN ENTRANCE

Funfair Rides

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12.00 PM - 6.00 PM MAIN ENTRANCE

Funfair Games

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12.00 PM - 6.00 PM CENTRAL BASIN

Food & Drink

Multicultural Cuisine

Mouthwatering foods and exotic drink from the indian subcontinent is key aspect of any Mela. The Cardiff Mela is no different and will 'serve' a perfect platform for worldwide food stalls from a variety of local and national caterers.

program
12.00 PM - 6.00 PM CENTRAL BASIN

Shopping

Clothes / Jewellery / Handicrafts

A large selection of products will be on site from over 80 trading stalls selling clothing, accessories, jewellery, toys, arts and crafts, music and much more! There will also be some exciting product launches.

program
12.00 PM - 6.00 PM CENTRAL BASIN

Stalls & Marquees

Ready to trade setup

Businesses and organisations may hire one of our on marquees or stalls which are constructed on site and ready for occupation on the day. As the event takes place on a concrete surface, owns stalls are not permitted. More than one unit can be taken by larger organisations who require additional space.

program
12.00 PM - 6.00 PM CENTRAL BASIN

Community Zone

South Wales Police / Race Equality First / Carer Wales

At this year's event, a number of organisations will be facilitating the Community Zone. Come along and visit a range of stalls which will provide information on services that will benefit Cardiff's diverse communities. The stalls will include information on Health & Wellbeing, Housing, Training, Employment and more. You can also come along and enjoy a variety of interactive activities such as music & arts and crafts.

program
12.00 PM - 6.00 PM CENTRAL BASIN

Mehndi Artists

Multiple Local Artists

Mehndi is the art of applying Henna on the body. It is a beautiful form of temporary body decoration. Mehndi is a traditional form of decoration for both men and women in countries such as India, Morocco, and Pakistan. It is generally used for special occasions, particularly weddings. The term refers to the powder and paste, and the design on the skin, as well as the party or ceremony.

program
12.00 PM - 6.00 PM MAIN ENTRANCE

Sports & Music Workshops

TBC

Details coming soon.

Register Here

The Cardiff Mela is now offering your organisation an opportunity to come on board and get involved with this event. Email us on info@cardiffmela.com for an application form.

Whether your focus is on directly marketing your products or services to a diverse audience or build lasting links with the local community.

Frequently asked questions

Please find below some commonly asked questions, should you have any other queries, please email us directly on info@cardiffmela.com

Mela is a Sanskrit word meaning 'gathering' or 'to meet' or a Fair. It is used in the Indian subcontinent for all sizes of gathering and can be religious, commercial, cultural or sports. In rural traditions Melas or village fairs were (and in some cases still are) of great importance. This led to their export around the world by south Asian diaspora communities wishing to bring something of that tradition to their new countries. The Kumbh Mela, held every twelve years, at Allahabad, Haridwar, Nashik and Ujjain is one of the largest fairs in India, where over 60 million people gathered in January 2001 , making it the largest gathering anywhere in the world.

In modern usage outside South Asia it has become a term that shows widespread diversity of interpretation, just as has been the case in South Asia. One can find a Nepalese Mela in the USA or a Bengali Mela in London. For many it is a wider intercultural (though mainly Asian) festival incorporating music, dance, food and other aspects of mainstream culture. Since the 1980s an increasing number of Melas have regularly been held in larger towns outside south Asia, especially in the UK and North America. The larger Melas tend to be those with larger ethnic minority populations, but many Melas are held in communities with small South Asian diasporas. Community ownership of these Melas is important to the south Asian communities who see them as opportunities to share their cultural heritage with the mainstream. They are opportunities for bridge building and community building and can perform a strong socially cohesive function. More successful outside-of-Asia Melas tend to have a strongly diversified funding base with private/public/third sector collaboration. Public money is often spent on the Melas. This reflects the Mela organisers and public authorities joint conviction that, as in the sub-continent, Melas are for everyone.

Cardiff's first and only large scale outdoor Mela initially was launched, organised and managed by a voluntary committee in 2006. In 2010, we incorporated as a Company Limited by Guarantee (without share capital) and as of 2019, we are a Private Limited Company Limited by Shares. A board of directors along with a committee of community members make up the organisational team. For on the day event logistics, a local event management company is contracted to meet the needs of this large scale outdoor event. The event itself has now been running successfully and has grown steadily into Wales' largest single day multicultural event attracting 30,000+ visitors in 2010.

Also, this free event was part funded by Cardiff City Council and the Arts Council in Wales as well as partners including O2, BBC Asian Network, South Wales Police, South Wales Fire & Rescue Services and many more in the past.

The Founder, Artistic Director and Event Coordinator of the Cardiff Mela is Mr. Imran Iqbal; Finance Director is Mr. Ataf Salim and head of volunteers each year is Dr. Aamir Sheikh.

Below are details of previous year Cardiff Mela locations and headline performers:

o 2006 - MELA CANCELLED DUE TO POOR WEATHER

o 2007 - Coopers Field, Cardiff City Centre - Sona Family

o 2008 - Roald Dahl Plass, Cardiff Bay - Labh Janjua / Imran Khan

o 2009 - Roald Dahl Plass, Cardiff Bay - H Dhami / Mumzy / Navin Kundra

o 2010 - Roald Dahl Plass, Cardiff Bay - Bombay Rockers / Imran Khan

o 2011 - Roald Dahl Plass, Cardiff Bay - Stereo Nation / PBN / Mumzy / Jernade Miah

o 2012 - Roald Dahl Plass, Cardiff Bay - Jassi Sidhu / H Dhami / Imran Khan / Apache Indian / Nafees

o 2013 - Roald Dahl Plass, Cardiff Bay - Jaz Dhami / Juggy D

o 2014 - Roald Dahl Plass, Cardiff Bay - Lehmber Hussainpuri / Team PBN / Ajay / Bonafide

o 2015-2018 - MELA CANCELLED DUE TO NON AVAILABILITY OF VENUE / FUNDING

o 2019 - Roald Dahl Plass, Cardiff Bay - H Dhami / Koomz / Bambi Bains / Jay Kadn

o 2020-2021 - MELA CANCELLED DUE TO COVID-19

o 2022 - Roald Dahl Plass, Cardiff Bay - Raf Saperra / Liilz / DJ Kizzi / Metz & Trix / Panjabi Hit Squad / Serena / Smash Bengali

o 2023 - Roald Dahl Plass, Cardiff Bay - Raghav / Rahim Pardesi / Haroon Rashid

o 2024 - Roald Dahl Plass, Cardiff Bay - HEADLINE PERFORMERS - TO BE CONFIRMED

LOCATION

ROALD DAHL PLASS

BUTE PLACE - CARDIFF BAY - CF10 5AL

Roald Dahl Plass (Welsh: Plas Roald Dahl) is a public plaza in Cardiff Bay. It is named after Cardiff-born author Roald Dahl and is located south of the city centre. The square is home to the Welsh Assembly and the Wales Millennium Centre.

Our Partners

The Mela is a free event and is kindly funded through a number of sources. Previously, the event was part funded by Cardiff City Council, Arts Council Wales, O2, BBC Asian Network, South Wales Police and many more. Below were our partners for 2023.

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Mela Information Pack 2024

Should you wish to perform, sponsor or trade at the event, the best method to get in touch would be to email info@cardiffmela.com and our event coordinator will revert to you immediately.

Once your email is received, we can send you an updated information pack for the event which contains details of sponsorship, stalls and other event information.

Every year, the Cardiff Mela sells out all its sponsorship, stalls and marquees, so we would recommend you register your interest as soon as possible.

2024 MELA POSTER

Contact Us

EMAIL US ON: INFO@CARDIFFMELA.COM

WHATSAPP US ON: 07810561200