MuslimFest Celebrates 19 Years of Canadian Muslim Culture
A weekend of love, laughter, food and entertainment for people of all ages is just around the corner with the annual MuslimFest celebration happening this coming weekend!
The 19th annual MuslimFest (MFEST) returns to Celebration Square in Mississauga from September 2-September 4. The event, which does not charge admission and runs from noon -11p.m. each day, will feature live performances, art exhibits and delicious food vendors. The festival is a unique cultural fusion that combines faith traditions and Canadian culture.
“Over the past 19 years MuslimFest has become a must-attend event for Canadian Muslims throughout Ontario,” says Tariq Syed, Event Director of the Festival. “We encourage people from all backgrounds to visit the festival as it provides Muslims with opportunities to share our culture with the broader community. We believe in education through the language of art, humour, and meaningful entertainment; something we feel can create new connections throughout our community.”
Highlights for this year’s festival include:
Opening Ceremony
The festival will begin at 3 p.m. on Friday, September 2nd with the annual Flag Unveiling Ceremony and a children’s choir singing the national anthem.
Live Acrobats + Martial Arts
Konga Fitness will be performing their famous live mix acrobats and martial arts session on stage. You don’t want to miss two highly trained performers spinning though the air!
Light Calligraphy
This year we will be feature a spectacular light calligraphy art display. Words and pictures come to life with the tough of light and magic - you don’t want to miss this!
The Fortunate Slave – Play
A prominent Fulani Muslim prince from West Africa who was kidnapped to the Americas during the Atlantic slave trade. He was released due to an English humanitarian’s intervention and lived in England along with the nobility before returning back home to Senegal.
Entertainment
The festival stages will be busy with a full line-up of entertainers scheduled for the event. Amal Kassir and Labibah will present their poetry and spoken word pieces.
Boona Mohamed, Illyas Mao, & Abdullah Bustami will entertain festival guests with their musical performances. Comedians Nadira from NYC and Spoken word by Ammar Al Shukry will keep guests laughing on Saturday night.
Art Battle
The ‘Battle of the Brushes’ is a painting competition between artist who will create works of art LIVE in a bid to win and wow the audience with their talents.
International Bazaar
Those attending the event will have the chance to browse and shop at many unique vendors over the weekend. There will be a Fragrant Oils Boutique and vendors selling Turkish clothing, Middle Eastern ornaments, Turkish lanterns, and more.
Workshops
On Saturday and Sunday, festival attendees can learn how to create Phulkari Embroidery, Calligraphy, Water Marble and Hacer Ozcan Style Water Marble. Registration for workshops is based on a first-come-first-served basis.
In addition to the workshops, there will be an arts and crafts tent and carnival games where children and families can drop by throughout the day.
Book Launch by Hasan Zia
Mehmet Ahmet Osman is an 18-year-old typical teenager. Mehmet is obsessed with history, and comes across a diary, and Mehmet soon finds himself at the center of the emerging Ottoman Empire—in the 15th century! He navigate medieval Ottoman society in an upside-down world, without technology, university, or even democracy. All they want is to get back home. Will they?
To learn more about the event, visit muslimfest.com, follow on Twitter, Instagram, like on Facebook and check out past festival pictures on Flickr. To stay up-to-date, use and follow the hashtags #MuslimFest, #MFEST2022, #WasteFreeMuslims.
About MuslimFest
MFEST is an award-winning annual festival in Mississauga that celebrates the best in Muslim arts and entertainment. The event is put together by 200 volunteers with the aim to display art and performances to enlighten and share a unique cultural experience for all.
Launched in 2004, MuslimFest is a joint project of DawaNet and Sound Vision. Today, it is considered North America’s largest Muslim festival of its kind, attracting over 60,000 attendees annually.
MuslimFest is one of Ontario's top 100 festivals and is listed among Top 40 Best festivals in North America by FlightNetwork.com.
MuslimFest was recognized by City of Mississauga for their #WasteFreeMuslimFest campaign. In 2017, they diverted tonnes of garbage away from landfill by recycling and separating compostable waste at the Waste Station thanks to the festival’s dedicated Green Team.
MuslimFest is sponsored by: DawaNet, Paramount Fine Foods, Burma Task Force, Human Concern International, Zabiha Halal, Konga Fitness, National Zakat Foundation, Cen Stone, Waton Kabob, and Halal Meals