FROM YAHTZEE, SWINGBALL AND GUESS WHO TO DOCTORS AND NURSES, MUDPIES AND CHARADES – ARGOS REVEALS THE CHILDHOOD GAMES THAT ARE FALLING BY THE WAYSIDE  

To celebrate Argos's 50th Birthday, new research commissioned by the retailer has revealed how children's play has transformed over the last half a decade.

Club Kali celebrates its 25th Anniversary with the World Premiere of its documentary film – Discovering Kali at the prestigious British Film Institute, part of this year’s ‘Too Desi Too Queer’ programme at the London Indian Film Festival.

The festival takes place from 22nd June – 29th June 2023 and there will be a second showing of Discovering Kali, at the Electric Cinema in Birmingham with both screenings featuring a talent Q-&-A.

For the first time ever, audiences will discover the story behind the iconic club and its impact on the lives of an intergenerational, inclusive LGBTQ+ community and relationship to South Asian heritage. Told through the lens of its pioneering founders DJ Ritu and Rita Hirani, the many
performers and community members over the years, the film documents the club’s 25 years of community, unity, education, and celebration. Club Kali started out as a monthly club night for the South Asian LGBTQ+ community in the mid-90s and quickly evolved to the worldwide
phenomenon it is today.

Co-founder Rita Hirani shares her thoughts,
“Club Kali has finally come out. We are intergenerational, international, the stories of our community are powerful, beautiful and to be celebrated. This film shares the joy, the journey and the impact this safe space has had on the community, how what started as a club night
became a global LGBTQ+ community.”

Club Kali started at the Dome, in Tufnell Park, it’s home for over two decades. Opening its doors to the sounds of the legendary DJ Ritu’s expertly mix of ‘Eastern flavours with Western classics. The music was a blend of Bhangra, Bollywood, Arabic music and Western pop appealing to the hearts and feet of an incredibly diverse community. Although Club Kali avoided mainstream media attention, people heard about it by word of mouth, supposedly the World’s best kept secret group became international, bringing the LGBTQ+ community together from all over the world.

The monthly and fortnightly club nights were celebrations of a global LGBTQ+ family; themed events marked Eid, Diwali, Christmas, Chinese New Year, Summer Solstice and united all faiths and cultures. The iconic Kali "Chutney Queens" – drag queens and trans folk dressing in
elaborate and ornate saris and jewellery greeted guests, performed rituals, and took charge of the annual birthday cake on stage.

The events at the Dome were so popular that alongside these, celebrity and artist performances took place at venues such as the Barbican, Institute of Contemporary Arts, the British Film Institute, the Victoria and Albert Museum.

Co- Founder and infamous DJ Ritu, who was awarded an MBE in 2023 describes,
“The Kali dancefloor was filled with a multi-cultural following, non-Asians with Asians who yearned to hear Hindi film music mixed with RnB, Hip Hop, commercial house, but sung in Hindi, Punjabi, or Urdu, and everyone united by dancefloor beats and rhythms. This was and remains a blessing.”

In 2021 Club Kali was awarded a LGBTQ+ Heritage Plaque by Islington’s Pride describing Club Kali as a place that helped to inspire communities across the country.

Join audiences this week in London and Birmingham to take a nostalgic trip down Club Kali’s memory lane and be a part of the 25 years celebration!

For ticket booking information please visit the festival or BFI website:

Friday 23 June @BFI 6pm, South Bank, London.
Tickets: https://bit.ly/Kali25BFI

Sunday 25 June @Electric 6pm Cinema Birmingham
Tickets: https://bit.ly/3NxxmFw

Discovering Kali – 25 years of the legendary Club was made possible with funding by
Awards for All National Lottery Community Fund (in 2020)
Directed by Matt Mahmood-Ogston

Join in the conversation:
#clubkali #discoveringkali #loveliff
Discovering Kali Insta / Facebook / Twitter

London Indian Film Festival
British Film Institute
-Ends-

Watch Trailer: https://bit.ly/KaliTrailer
For further information and interview requests please contact: This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.

In fact, nearly eight in 10 Black men do not think their ethnicity influences their risk of prostate cancer, despite being twice as likely to be diagnosed than other men. 

Here at CVFM Radio, it has become customary to celebrate the last week of the holy month of Ramadan with a gracious community meal at a local eatery. 

This year, The Mint Leaf restaurant at Sirkars was our proud host, and together we put on a lovely evening’s showing on the night of Tuesday the 18th. Mint Leaf owner Ejaz Hussain was in attendance, and he and his team presented a sumptuous feast for 72!

CVFM director Idrees Rashid is the brains behind the meal. He organised a livestream running throughout the dinner, which merged seamlessly with the ordinary evening’s Ramadan broadcast in-studio as crew and volunteers drifted from the studio to the venue. A  link to the livestream can found here:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SMa6d7we_7E

Aman Hussain, 24, provided moving vocals as he sung a rendition of the Adhaan (the traditional call to prayer) shortly before the feasting commenced.

The event saw attendance from a range of local dignitaries, including chairperson of the Tees Valley Muslim council Shaufqat “Charlie” Rashid; Kew and Gordon Lim representing the Chinese community; Bini Aria, the winner of a BME achievement award last year; and Middlesbrough’s own Mayor, Andy Preston, and his deputy Mieka Smiles - highly relevant people in light of the upcoming elections.

Below you can find a rich photo gallery showing off the highlights of the evening’s proceedings - in my humble opinion, the imagery of the luscious, authentic Kashmiri buffet should speak to its flavour more than any words I could type!

Today marks the end of Ramadan - Ramadan Mubarak - and with it a great celebration for the strength and spiritual fortitude of the Muslim community, in honouring their noble tradition of fasting, reservation, humility, charity and sharing. 

We take our hats off to the Islamic populace of Middlesbrough, here at CVFM, 104.5 - and hope that you’ve enjoyed the month of special edition broadcasting that accompanied the sacred fast. Stay tuned as we resume regular broadcasting, with familiar faces such as Baker Lillivick, Mike Clarke, Steven Peacock and myself preparing to return to the air.