The phenomenal success of the Bangladeshi Festival 99 and due to public demand, BCD embarked on a carnival celebration of the very best of Bengali arts and culture in July 2ooo. The Bangladeshi Millennium Festival included the participation of educational establishments such as local colleges and universities, providing educational opportunities for the young people of Birmingham. National organisations like the Royal Navy, The Army, Police, Fire Services were present to give advice to young people. Members of the general public also enjoyed the opportunity to sample what had been on offer from exhibitors of education, business, careers, commerce, fashion, arts, sports, music and a lot more. Established and well-known charities, businesses and companies from a variety of fields supported the celebration.
On Sunday 16th July Small Heath Leisure Centre was met by thousands of people of Bangladeshi, Asian and other origin. It is estimated that throughout the day almost 5,ooo people attended.
The Lord Mayor of Birmingham performed the opening of the festival.The main programme finally got underway, after a short speech by the Lord Mayor of Birmingham Coun. Theresa Stewart. The stalls and activities proved to be very popular as hundreds of participants flocked to see them. Other popular activities included carom, a board game invented in Bangladesh, and face painting which was popular amongst the young.
BCD Progress Seminar
Shortly after heralded the opening of the BCD progress seminar attended be the Chief Guest Lord Nazir Ahmed. In this seminar there were presentations from Dr Shahidullah and Khusru Khan, highlighting the importance of Educational and Training needs of Bangladeshi and South Asian people. Lord Nazir Ahmed also spoke about the needs of voluntary organisations such as BCD to carry out much needed community work to supplement services not being met by statutory bodies.
Highlight of the Festival
As the festival gently proceeded, Mr. Amin took the centre stage to perform his magic show. At this point the crowd were given a break as the humidity in the hall soared and the crowd were treated to some fine dancing by Matthiessan Music School from Calcutta, and also other local and national dancers.
The highlight of the day was the Fashion Show, which got underway at 3:00pm. This was based in the sports hall, being performed by professional models hired and paired with stunning outfits generously supplied by Milans and Saajan Saree Centre. In total there was five fashion shows throughout the day.
Bangladeshi Millennium Festival aimed to provide the public in the vicinity of Birmingham with an unprecedented opportunity to experience, appreciate and understand Bengali arts and culture. Alongside this, the festival also gave the opportunity to all the participants to make contact and receive career advice from various prospective employers.
