BACK TO BOTANIC FOR BELFAST MELA FESTIVAL

The traditional Belfast Mela festival will make a welcome return to Botanic Gardens on Sunday, August 28, this year for a special Mela Day, sponsored by Sensata Technologies, as event organisers ArtsEkta announced tickets are now on sale via its website www.belfastmela.org.uk

Botanic Gardens will once again be transformed into a global wonderland of music, dance, food and art from noon until 6pm hosted by U105’s Carolyn Stewart and UTV’s Paul Reilly, who are pictured in Botanic Gardens this week with ArtsEkta founder Nisha Tandon and bollywood dancer Dona Das Gupta with little Noa, nine, Amelia, eight, and Aria, four, to announce this year’s Belfast Mela festival plans.

In addition, a week-long series of events will take over the city starting with an opening Mela Carnival Parade on Saturday, August 20, through the streets of Belfast and a free family day in the grounds of City Hall afterwards, along with an extended schedule of daily events throughout the city all week in the lead up to the big

finale with Mela Day on Sunday, August 28.

Nisha Tandon, OBE, founder and CEO of ArtsEkta, who created the Belfast Mela in 2007, says: “We are absolutely delighted to announce our return to Botanic Gardens

for the last Sunday in August

after a break of two years due to the pandemic.

“However, the success of last year’s Mela Festival Week means this year will be our biggest ever with events taking place over eight days to celebrate our city’s growing cultural diversity like never before.

“One of the big changes for 2022 is that all tickets must be pre-booked, as we will no longer be able to accept payment at Botanic gates on the Sunday, so it’s important people buy now to avoid disappointment.

“We will be announcing more details of all the wonderful events we have planned when we have our launch in August, but for now we just want to celebrate our return to Botanic Gardens, it really has been too long.”

Tickets cost £8 adults, £6 concession (children aged between 5-15 and the over 60s), £16 family (two adults and two children under 16), children under 5 go free. Tickets must be booked in advance online.

The Belfast Mela is principally funded by Belfast City Council with support from Arts Council for NI; Tourism NI, Community Relations Council; National Lottery Heritage Fund, National Lottery Community Fund, Public Health Agency and the Department of Agriculture, Environment and Rural Affairs.

The title sponsor is Sensata Technologies and media partners are UTV and U105.