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:

 

·                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.

·                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    

·                Lisa Ray: actor and model from Cooking with Stella, Bollywood/Hollywood, and the Oscar-nominated film, Water