The Festival of Thetford and Punjab returns to celebrate the legacy of the Duleep Singh family

A festival celebrating Punjabi connections to Thetford and the surrounding area through food, history and entertainment has kicked off today and here is all you need to know about it.

The Festival of Thetford and Punjab will be hosting cultural events celebrating the life and legacy of the Duleep Singh family, the last Royal Family of the Punjab, who lived in Elveden.

Indi Sandhu, the festival’s director, said: “The festival of Thetford and Punjab has become an important event in the Thetford calendar with local and diverse communities from around England attending to be part of this cultural extravaganza with focus on Maharaja Duleep Singh’s story.”

The festival started this afternoon with the curator of the town’s Ancient House Museum, Oliver Bone, giving a tour around the site which was given to the town by Prince Frederick Duleep Singh 100 years ago.

During the day tomorrow, the museum will host a ‘Mini Maharajah Posh Peg Dolls Workshop’, giving families the chance to make their own Maharajahs to take home.

In the evening, The Thomas Paine Hotel in Whitehart Street will host its 11th Annual Curry Night, with authentic and locally sourced Indian food and music from a Bollywood Bhangra DJ.

On Saturday, there will be a pop-up exhibition about Maharajah Duleep Singh in The Ancient House Museum and a trio of talks at Thetford Library.

The Raymond Street site will welcome Rav Singh, founder of A Little History of the Sikhs, as he presents Punjabi stories from around the world, hopping from location to location, from Lahore to Paris, Budapest to Blo-Norton.

Then Dr Tejpal Singh Ralmill will talk about a new exhibition in London about more than 4,000 soldiers from the Indian Army who visited Hampton Court Palace in Southwest London between 1902 and 1937 to take part in coronations and peace parades.

Finally, Davinder Toor will explore the life of Ranjit Singh. The talk will look at the Wallace Collection’s major exhibition in London about the great Sikh leader.

In the evening, at Elveden Village Hall, Sikh Historian Peter Bance will talk about the children of Maharajah Duleep Singh, sharing insights into living and growing up at Elveden Hall, and their contributions to the wider society.

On Sunday, The Ancient House Museum will give people a chance to meet costumed characters and handle real Victorian artefacts as it opens its doors for free.

The grand finale of the Festival of Thetford and Punjab will be at Thetford Grammar School as colourful and vibrant performers from East Anglia and the UK come together for the festival’s Mela.

Featuring Dhol Blaster King Gurcharan Mall, Bollywood Sparkles, DEA Dhol Drummers, Virsa Punjab Bhangra Dancers, and Sikh martial arts from the Baba Fateh Singh Gatka Akhara.

The family-fun Mela will also include Indian food, Henna Art, arts, crafts and heritage stalls.

To find out more about the Festival of Thetford and Punjab, times and more information about the events, go to thetfordpunjabfest.com