Multicultural Festival hopes to be first of many locally

On Saturday evening, the first Multicultural Festival got underway outdoors at the Bradford Library grounds.

This event was a collaboration of the Bradford Diversity Action Group and the South Asian Association of Simcoe County.

On hand for the opening ceremonies were Mayor Rob Keffer and Councillors Raj Sandhu, Gary Lamb, Mark Contois and Peter Dykie Jr.

After opening remarks from Noora Akhavan, master of ceremonies Asha Frost from the Bradford Diversity Action Group was asked to offer Indigenous prayers and smudging.

Once the blessing was passed, Akhavan introduced Dolly Bhatia a local dancer, to show Bollywood Interactive Dance. To everyone’s surprise, Dolly invited the Mayor and councillors, Sandhu and Lamb, to join her on stage for a few pointers.

The evening continued with Flamenco-style guitarist and singer Emilio De La Garcia, Persian Dancers, African drummers and a local band for a Reggae jam session.

In addition to the lively entertainment, food vendors and specialty craft vendors were open throughout the event offering their wares.

The evening ended with a movie presentation featuring In The Heights, a Spanish musical celebrating the Latino culture sponsored by the Barrie Film Festival.

“This evening has had a good turn out of people and we hope this will continue into an annual event each year here in Bradford,” Akhavan said of the event. “Food, dance, art, film and continued education are important to bringing cultures together.”