ORGANISERS of the Madirirano Festival — where people gather to enjoy live music performances — held three times every year at Takashinga Cricket Club in Highfield, yesterday said their desire was to have the Zimbabwe Tourism Authority (ZTA) classify it as a national fiesta.
BY DEMETRIA MANYONGA
Simbarashe “Simba Bodyslam” Chakare told NewsDay Life & Style that this year’s edition of the festival — which has since put on a national outlook — is set for August 11, a day before the nation commemorates its Second Chimurenga war heroes.
Dubbed Usarare Special Edition, Chakare said they were expecting people from all over the country to attend the fiesta.
“With this Madirirano special edition, we want everyone to come. The event is attracting people from as far afield as Mutare, Bulawayo, Zvishavane and Gweru,” he said.
“The event is now a national event and we are hoping, with the assistance from the ZTA, to put it on the national calendar because it’s now a tourist attraction. With financial assistance from the government, we would also want it hosted in the National Sports Stadium because Zimbabwean people need Madirirano.”
The festival has, in the past, received support from Nash Furniture and Hwindi Taxis.
Chakare said they were set to beef up security at the venue in order to deal with any potential chaos.
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“This time, the rest of the ground will be paying. We will also be increasing our security. There will be more uniformed police officers on the ground,” he said.
Performers at this year’s edition will include Enzo Ishall (pictured), Killer T, Seh Calaz, Ti Gonzi, Allanah, Blot, Chillspot Family, Dj Dollarbill, Butler and Trey Jones.
“The line-up is super. It will be fireworks from beginning to end,” he said.
Madirirano is staged during the Easter, Heroes and Christmas holidays. Prominent people that have attended previous editions include socialites Genius “Ginimbi” Kadungure and Pokello Nare.
The Madirirano concept was borrowed from shebeens and other such house party settings, where people would commune over beer. The concept has now been adopted by the local showbiz, evolving over the years to become one of the biggest showbiz events in the country.
Although the festival is held in a high-density suburb, itself a departure from tradition, it carries an upmarket ambience that has even seen it attract affluent patrons, bridging the gap between merrymakers from the northern and southern parts of the capital city. The last edition of Madirirano attracted in excess of 5 000 people.
