London Mela 2015: Europe's biggest South Asian festival underway to welcome thousands

This year's annual London Mela on Sunday between 1pm and 9pm will feature South Asian food (including Indian street food such as samosas, chaat, nariyal paani, bhajiya, jalebis etc), giant funfair, children's activities, sports, arts and craft marketplace, fashion and Bollywood-inspired dance to the amusement of visitors. The annual mela festivities will come to a close with a grand, theatrical firework finale.

Sponsored by Mayor of London, Hounslow Council and Ealing Council, the annual London Mela is now in its thirteenth year attracting crowds from all over the country to watch the biggest Asian artists perform live.

This is the first year, the London Mela will be a ticket event – costing £7.50 per adult if purchased on the day at the gate. In the previous years, London Mela was a free-for-all event. According to the Mela's official website, this year's event is ticket-based because of huge reductions in funding from its partners. The website further clarified: "We are still not for profit and the ticket income will raise under 25% of the total cost."

Among the performances on the main stage this year, headline act will be performed by Bollywood sensation Benny Dayal with his magnificent live band Funktuation. Discovered by the legendary music maestro AR Rahman, Benny Dayal will perform for the second time in London, after his well-received live performance at The Royal Albert Hall for BBC Proms this summer.

Other top performers at London Mela 2015 include artist Raghav Mathur the indo-Canadia singer-songwriter; Arjun, the London-based singer, songwriter and music producer; Imran Khan, the Pakistani singer, songwriter, and record producer popular for his 'Ni Nachleh' number.

Here's a full low-down on the main stage performance at London Mela 2015 on Sunday, September 6th between 1pm and 9pm: 12:15 – 12:45  Naumati Baja Walkabout 12:45 – 12:55  Naumati Baja On Stage  13:00 – 13:25  RK Square  13:30 – 13:45  The Shiamak London Dance Team  13:55 – 14:35  4×4 Bhangra 14:45 – 15:20  Veena Parashar  15:30 – 15:45  Saumya Tandon & Aashif Sheikh from TV Show Bhabi Ji Ghar Par Hai!  15:45 – 16:00  Ramee 16:10 – 16:35  Arjun 16:45 – 17:10  Mumzy Stranger 17:20 – 17:50  Raghav 18:05 – 19:35  Benny Dayal 19:45 – 20:25  Imran Khan 20:30 – 20:45  Transe Express presents Mobile Homme featuring Dhol Academy and Swifty X Noble DJ Set 20:45:   Mela Firework Finale!

Keep watching this space for more pictures from London Mela 2015 at Gunnersbury Park.

The free London Mela event attracts around 80,000 people. It is expected that this year's Mela will be attended by fewer people because of the ticket charges.

For full details on ticket prices, see below the price list:

London Mela Ticket Prices – Early Bird
Adult Tickets	£5.50
Family Ticket (1 Adult, 2 Kids)	£9.00
Family Ticket (2 Adults, 2 Kids)	£14.00
OAP’s & Children 12-16 Years	£4.00
Additional Children Under 12	£3.00

 

Advance – Post 4th August
Adult Tickets	£6.50
Family Ticket (1 Adult, 2 Kids)	£11.00
Family Ticket (2 Adults, 2 Kids)	£17.00
OAP’s & Children 12-16 Years	£4.50
Additional Children Under 12	£3.50

 

Gate – On The Day
Adult Tickets	£7.50
Family Ticket (1 Adult, 2 Kids)	£12.00
Family Ticket (2 Adults, 2 Kids)	£18.00
OAP’s & Children 12-16 Years	£5.50
Additional Children Under 12	£4.50

 * Children aged 4 and under do not require a ticket

 

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