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MASALA! MEHNDI! MASTI!

Celebrates 10 AMMMazing Years of South Asian Culture
North America’s largest FREE South Asian festival hits the mark Experience the best in
South Asian music, art, dance, & fare!


TORONTO, July 04, 2010
Melissa Krishna

This July 23-25, 2010, Masala! Mehndi! Masti!, North America’s largest free South Asian festival, fires up Toronto’s Exhibition Place for a jam-packed weekend of lively entertainment, vibrant colours, savory dishes, majestic art, and star-studded performances! Celebrating its most important milestone to date, M!M!M! will recognize 10 years of growth, in addition to the evolution of the South Asian community and its influence on Canada’s cultural mosaic.

In 2001, the founders began Masala! Mehndi! Masti! as a dream, envisioning a massive festival encouraging people of all backgrounds celebrating South Asian culture, “We had to create an event that would span generations: all ages, all ethnicities -- one that all Canadians could enjoy,” says Jyoti Rana, one of the founding team members. “With ten years behind us we’ve learnt so much and seen the festival grow exponentially. Today, South Asians are Canada’s #1 growing populace making this festival that much more relevant to this country.” In 2010, the dream has become a reality attracting a million at­tendees, 700+ performances by 5000+ artists, and 300+ local vendors since its inception.

Over the past decade, M!M!M! has shone a spotlight on some of the biggest South Asian and South Asian-inspired talents from around the world including:

  • Lisa Ray: actor and model from Cook­ing with Stella, Bollywood/Hollywood, and the Oscar-nominated film, Water
  • Nandita Das: a well known social activist and actor/producer extraordinaire of off-beat artistic Indian films
  • Karsh Kale and MIDIval Punditz: major force in the Asian Massive movement, a club-based phenomenon on several continents
  • Shiamak Davar: the colossus of choreography in India with several dance schools globally including several in Canada.
  • •Deepa Mehta: world famous director of Heaven on Earth, Water, Bollywood/ Hollywood, and many other films

  • Rishi Rich Project featuring Jay Sean: they pioneered the Bhangra- R&B fusion and Jay Sean went on to become a globally recognized singer with his hit single ‘Down’ hitting the top of the US charts
  • Rahul Bose: another well known social activist and actor/producer of Arthouse films

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This year M!M!M! is excited to announce an exciting lineup including: Actor Boman Irani, who originally gained recognition for his role in Munnabhai MBBS and most recently won the filmfare and star screen awards for his role in the super-hit Bollywood movie 3 Idiots; Suzanne D’Mello, a Diva in her own right, who has also collaborated with virtuoso composer AR Rahman; Indian Classical musicians Amaan and Ayaan Ali Khan, and one time hosts of Zee TV’s popular Sa Re Ga Ma music talent show; Salman Ahmed of South Asia’s biggest sufi-rock band Junoon; the Toronto Tabla Ensemble who headlined the very first M!M!M! festival; the premiere of M!M!M!’s first Senior Desi Idol and many more producing Masala! Mehndi! Masti!’s biggest year yet!

 

About the Masala! Mehndi! Masti! Festival

This 2010, Masala! Mehndi! Masti! celebrates its 10th year anniversary. Meaning Spice! Henna! Fun!, M!M!M! is North America’s largest South Asian festival with over 100,000 attendees each year. The festival aims to introduce a cultural explosion to the mainstream and celebrate the many talented South Asian, or South Asia inspired, artists that exist globally. This multigenerational presentation fuses traditional and contemporary artistic expression through music, dance, film, theatre, literature and poetry, natural health practices, social issues, cuisine, arts & crafts and much more! The festival is free admission and open to the public from July 23-25, 2010 at The Exhibition Place, Toronto.

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