With multicultural Birmingham set to celebrate the hundreds of thousands of Desi residents during South Asian Heritage Month, we took a look at all the mega events connected to the community.
Birmingham Museums will present a range of enlightening and enthralling activities and events during the annual South Asian Heritage Month celebrated between July 18 to August 17. However, they are not the only ones to honour, recognise, and appreciate South Asian history and the cultural legacy, and the celebration will go on well into the year.
There’s a wide selection of events from music to literature coming to Birmingham in the next few months. Birmingham and Sandwell Mela, DESIblitz Literature Festival, The Migrant Festival at Ikon Gallery, and more will soon liven up different venues across the city.
Whether you are looking for a starter pack into South Asian culture or are looking for a deep dive, these fun events are the best place to start. They are not just for the South Asian community but anybody who is interested in the colourful and often loud folks that we are. Here are six big events coming to Birmingham to celebrate South Asian heritage:
1. South Asian Heritage Month, multiple events across city
Birmingham Museums is presenting a range of activities and events in celebration of South Asian Heritage Month from July 18 to August 17, and it’s all free to attend. From dance performances to learning how to drape a saree and a tour of a Birmingham neighbourhood where the South Asian community has had a big impact - there are loads of events to attend across the city. (Photo - Greta Zabulyte.)
2. Birmingham and Sandwell Mela, Smethwick
The biggest South Asian music festival in Europe is returning for a two-day affair with bhangra, dhol, and the many different flavours of the Indian subcontinent. The mela will bring some of the biggest names from Bollywood - the Hindi film industry in Mumbai - and Lollywood - Pakistan’s film industry, including Indian singer Guru Randhawa and Pakistani singer-songwriter Bilal Saeed. The mela will take place at Victoria Park in Smethwick on July 22-23. (Photo - Steve Mann - stock.adobe.com)
3. Birmingham Festival 23
Birmingham Festival 23 will celebrate the one year anniversary of the Commonwealth Games 2022, and any celebration of the Commonwealth will include the South Asian community as well. The mega event will run in Centenary Square for ten days from Friday, July 28 to Sunday, August 6. South Asian events like Sampad’s Home from Home on July 29 as well as Artistic Associate Mukhtar Dar’s Mast Qalandar Dancehall Mashup (MQD Mashup!) will have people mesmerised with how different cultures can fuse together. (Photo - Birmingham Festival 23)
4. The Migrant Festival at Ikon Gallery, Birmingham city centre
Ikon has produced The Migrant Festival, a free annual event for five years now. This year, from 17 August – 3 September 2023, the festival will feature projects by three Birmingham photographers – Vanley Burke, Ayesha Jones and Maryam Wahid – who collaborated with inner-city communities to share their stories of migration. The festival also includes artists’ talks, music events by Celebrating Sanctuary Birmingham and a family workshop. (Photo - West Midlands Growth Company)