Celebrating Our Festivals and Cultural Heritage
The Folkestone Nepalese Community (FNC) proudly celebrates a wide range of Nepalese festivals and cultural events, creating opportunities for our members, families, and friends to come together, share joy, and strengthen community bonds.
Through these celebrations, we preserve and promote our original Nepalese culture, traditions, ethos, and community identity while also fostering greater understanding and integration with the wider British community.
Our Annual Calendar Includes:
Dashain Get-Together Lease Cliff Hall– celebrating family and community unity, blessings, and renewal.
Tihar Deusi-Bhailo – Celebrated by senior members at the FNC Centre, keeping the Deusi-Bhailo tradition alive.
Nepalese New Year Festival at Hawkinge Community Centre / Other TBC – marking a new beginning with music, food, and dance.
Christmas Lunch at FNC Centre – an inclusive community celebration attended by the Town Mayor and senior citizens.
Holi Colour Festival at FNC Centre – spreading harmony, happiness, and friendship.
World in a Tent Multicultural Festival at FNC Centre – showcasing Nepalese culture alongside global communities.
Food & Farm Festival at Pent Farm – connecting food, farming, and cultural heritage.
Unity in Diversity
At each of these festivals, FNC proudly celebrates the many Nations of Nepal — honouring the rich cultural and traditional music and dances of Magar, Gurung, Rai, Limbu, Tamang, Sherpa, and other Nepalese ethnic communities.
Every event reflects FNC’s commitment to building a cohesive and inclusive community where cultural pride, unity, and mutual respect go hand in hand.
Women of Faith Exhibition – Collaboration with Anita J. McKenzie
Women of Faith is a creative project led by artist and photographer Anita J. McKenzie, exploring the lived experiences of women from diverse faith and spiritual backgrounds. The project highlights how faith, spirituality, and cultural identity shape women’s daily lives, resilience, and sense of belonging.
FNC was honoured to participate in this project, representing women from the Nepalese community and sharing insights into our cultural and spiritual practices. Through portraits and personal reflections, participants shared how their beliefs and traditions continue to guide, support, and inspire their lives in the UK.
The Women of Faith Exhibition aims to raise awareness of the process of ‘othering’—the social separation that can occur around religion or belief—and to promote understanding, empathy, and unity across communities.
The exhibition was curated by Anita J. McKenzie and funded by the Folkestone Women’s Forum and Healing Image Photography. It forms part of an ongoing artistic and community engagement initiative encouraging women to share their stories and celebrate the beauty of faith diversity.
Alongside the portraits, participants were invited to respond to a series of reflective questions designed by the artist to explore how faith and spirituality shape their lives. These questions invited women to share:
the name and nature of their faith or spiritual tradition;
how long they have followed this path;
what their everyday practice looks like;
the key life lessons faith has taught them; and
what objects, places, or symbols visually express their belief.
Their thoughtful, handwritten answers are displayed next to the photographs, offering a deeply personal insight into each woman’s spiritual journey. The images and words together reveal how faith sustains identity, resilience, and connection across cultures and generations.
(View the questionnaire responses and portraits in the gallery below.)
2025
2025
Â
2023Â
2025
2022
2025
Â
2023
