HINDUISM was being explored and celebrated in Preston at the weekend when crowds gathered at the Guild Hall for the 'Get Connected' Hindu Youth Festival 2002.

The colourful free event ran from 10am until 6pm on Saturday with exhibitions, workshops, delicious cuisine with plenty of Asian culture.

Demonstrations on how to wear a sari, the traditional dress of Hindu women, ran alongside relaxing lessons in yoga and reflexology.

Music filled the air with performances from local dancers Nikita Parekh, Hema Sharma and Krupa Purohit welcoming visitors with a Swagat dance.

The event, hosted by Hindu Youth UK, aimed to bring together young people from across the North West to provide a forum for Hindus to share their knowledge about their faith.

Kailash Parekh, Hindu Youth UK North event co-ordinator, said: "It was beyond our expectations, everyone had worked so hard to make the day a success. We need to keep the momentum and build on this again for next year."

The trends of Bollywood were brought to Preston, courtesy of the Maasti fashion group, with outfits which appear in some of the films and music and dance styles taken from India's movie industry.

Preston MP Mark Hendrick opened the event accompanied by the city's Mayor Jonathan Saksena.