The artist-led platform Dialled In debuts its first full day festival outside of London in the historic Niamos centre in Hulme, showcasing a wide breadth of South Asian artistry and culture.
The community co-operative hosts three stages, displaying an array of performance, art and music acts. Local food stalls offer a variety of South Asian cuisine, and the scent of chai floats around the venue, thanks to the festival’s sponsor Dishoom and their delicious free-flowing tea.
The first act I catch is House of Spice, a Manchester based South Asian and Middle Eastern performance house with an impressive resume that boasts Homobloc 23 and Manchester Pride to name just a few. Lucky Roy Singh dazzles in a cobalt blue sari, glittering under the lights as they serve on the historic theatre stage. Chilli Spice then takes to the stage, injecting a burst of energy and humour with their ‘Rasputin’ number.
Next up to grace the theatre stage is Arthi, a DJ, dancer and producer, fresh from Glastonbury’s coveted Shangri-La stage as well as Fred Again’s pop up rave in East London. Basically… she’s one to watch. And it’s not hard to see why: Arthi effortlessly glides through genres, spinning tried and true anthems from Fatboy Slim to Charli XCX’s future club classics. Nostalgia runs through the entire set, including N.E.R.D to Black Eyed Peas, backed by crunching beats. The crowd swarms over, unable to resist the urge to indulge in the feel good atmosphere.
Other notable acts include G33 and Chunky on the foyer stage, the Girls Don’t Sync member and Manchester musician collaborating to create magic with thick, thumping basslines that sticks in your throat and spiralling verses. The crowd laps it up, the set is punctuated with applause as the bass rattles against the fluorescent-tiled walls. Conveniently, Dishoom is positioned next to the stage, serving up delicious mid-rave snacks so you can do your gun fingers in one hand and devour a paneer roll in the other.
Pxssy Palace provide the perfect soundtrack to dancing like nobody’s watching – the serving trio deliver an empowering, sensual set that encourages anybody and everybody to leave their problems at the door and feel themselves. Also, points for cool outfits.
The night is rounded off by hometown hero Mr Scruff going b2b with Daytimes member and Chandé, fusing Scruff’s fun, upbeat dance style with Chandé’s high energy hip-hop influences and genre spanning approach to create a lively set that boosts the crowd after a long day of dancing. The best thing about Dialled In? You can be home before the strike of midnight.
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