'Beautiful colour explosion of fun' - Middlesbrough Mela is back with a bang
Video report by Julie Harrison
One of the North East's biggest multicultural festivals has returned following a pause due to the pandemic.
The Middlesbrough Mela has been taking place for three decades but was held online last year. It usually attracts thousands of people to Albert Park.
This year is a more scaled back affair that is designed to be covid safe, so it is being held over three separate events.
Tom Summerfield, from the organising committee, is glad to see the event return.
He said: "It's great to finally have it back on. It's been sorely missed by the committee and the community. So it's great to host a mini mela this year we do have the people of Middlesbrough to come out for. "
There was lots of the usual family fun, as well as cultural creations.
One woman attending said: "We haven't missed a single mela since 2015 so it's great to have it back again."
Another commented: "We love the mela we come as often as we can every year. Obviously we couldn't do it last years. It's just a beautiful colourful explosion of fun really."
For the last thirty years the Middlesbrough Mela has helped to highlight the diversity of the town.
Stage manager Kash Patel said: "The term Mela is actually Sanskrit and it means a gathering so what you ca see here is a gathering of people of all nationalities, all faiths young and old so it is a good community event.
It's important to continue that event so the future generations can experience what we have been putting on now.
Despite it being smaller this year the Mela is a hugely important celebration of multi-cultural Middlesbrough.