Popular Indiafest returns to Wickham Park

BY NANETTE HEBDIGE

Indiafest brings back its popular cultural and colorful two-day family festival, March 10 and 11, with many fun attractions, food, music and dance to celebrate Indian history and tradition in Brevard County.

When it was founded back in 1996, Indiafest’s modest effort was to share Indian history and heritage within the community.

“We’ve come quite far since we started and have evolved from multiculturalism to a philanthropic, cultural, nonprofit organization. Our efforts have always focused on giving back to the community by helping many local charities,” said Nina Gododia, the founder and chairperson at Indiafest. Its parent organization, Manav Mandir, has raised $1.15 million in support of community charities and provided aid in disaster relief.

Additionally, in 2022 Indiafest started a $100,000 endowment scholarship, partnering with Eastern Florida State College to provide funds for deserving students who need help with tuition.

“The committee has selected Grandparents Raising Grandchildren of Brevard as the charity of the year, an organization working directly with families of abused and neglected children to develop solutions to reduce the need for foster care,” Gododia said. “Proceeds will also go towards disaster relief efforts in the recent Turkey and Syria earthquake.”

The Festival has achieved a lot of popularity through the years with many local, regional and national sponsors participating. A different theme is selected for each event to keep it fresh and interesting. This year’s theme is “Handicrafts of India,” showcasing many arts and crafts displays, hands-on activities and vendors with jewelry and clothing along with flavorful Indian cuisine.

“Technically, this should have been our 29th year hosting the Festival, which has always had great turnout, but due to hurricanes and COVID, we missed a few events, so this makes it our 26th year,” Gododia said.

The festival will have something for everyone, from children’s activities, raffles, cooking demos and henna designs. The stage will present performances dancing to traditional folk and modern Indian music, and there will be a fashion

26th Indiafest

Wickham Park, 2500 Parkway Drive

10 a.m. - 6 p.m. — Saturday, March 10

11 a.m. - 5 p.m. — Sunday, March 11 show with beautiful clothing.

$8 adults, $4 children younger than 12 Purchase tickets at the gate or visit indiafestbrevard.org.

The Discover India booth will also be providing lots of information on the beauty and cultural aspect of India, showcasing places of interest to visit.

Tickets can be purchased at the gate or by going to indiafestbrevard.org VV