Daytime Raves: The Secret Parties That Liberated South Asian Youth

Daytimers, the UK-based South Asian arts collective, take you through the story behind their namesake. This talk will trace the history of secret daytime raves run by British Asians throughout the 1980s and 1990s. From fostering an environment for communities to express themselves freely, to breeding ground-breaking & scene-defining fusions of musical genres.

These spaces brought people together irrespective of religion, gender and sexual orientation, and liberated a generation denied the privilege of cultural expression. Daytimers unpack the cultural significance of these parties and their lasting legacy on both the South Asian musical underground and the British-Asian cultural landscape today. Despite the conceptually groundbreaking nature of these events, the majority of British South Asians are unaware of this part of their history, with cultural historians also failing to tell their stories. DIY culture in its purest form, discover a scene thought to be forgotten, now reemerging amongst today’s British Asian youth.