Multicultural Feast and Festival in Marton aims to bridge cultural gap

The Multicultural Council of Rangitīkei/Whanganui hosts its Multicultural Feast and Festival in Marton this weekend. Photo / NZME

An annual food festival that aims to promote cultural connections will take place in Marton this weekend.

It is hosted by the Multicultural Council of Rangitīkei and Whanganui, and the Rangitīkei District Council.

The Multicultural Council was founded by president Pushpa Prasad, alongside her husband and two daughters, more than 20 years ago.

The Multicultural Feast and Festival aims to “bridge the gap” culturally and give people an opportunity to observe and embrace differences in culture through art and food.

Cultural exposure to promote understanding and connection was an important goal for the Multicultural Council and was increasingly important as Aotearoa continued to diversify.

“There is a lot of racism and this racism brings along a lot of instability in the community and we don’t really want to let that breed any more,” Prasad said.

The festival will feature food trucks with varying cuisines and a diverse range of cultural performances, including music featuring the Indian stringed instrument taus (also known as mayuri veena) and a performance by the IPU New Zealand Kodama Japanese Drum Team.

“We encourage people to come along and have a beautiful evening,” Prasad said.

The event is being held at the Marton RSA club on Saturday, October 12, with the food trucks available from 5pm and the performances from 6.30-9.30pm.

Olivia Reid is a multimedia journalist based in Whanganui.