Samaa Festival 2026

Samaa Festival makes its debut in Dubai on Saturday 5 and Sunday 6 December 2026, filling the open-air Zabeel Park Amphitheatre beside the Dubai Frame with two evenings of live South Asian music, poetry and storytelling. Billed as a festival where the music and arts of a shared culture are performed live, this first annual edition brings together sitar, ghazal, Sufi music, qawwali and spoken word under the winter sky.

The line-up, night by night

Each evening has its own character. Day One on Saturday 5 December features Salman Ali, performing a Sufi and soulful set, and Piyush Mishra, who brings poetry, song and storytelling to the stage.

Day Two on Sunday 6 December is headlined by sitar maestro Ustad Shujaat Khan, with an evening of sitar and ghazal, followed by a Day Two finale that the organisers have yet to announce. Further speakers and guests are also still to be confirmed, so it is worth checking back closer to the date.

More than a concert: the mehfil spirit

Samaa is shaped around the idea of a mehfil, the intimate gathering where music, poetry and conversation flow together. Alongside the performances, the programme includes conversations on cinema, adab, theatre and the arts, giving the evenings a literary edge as well as a musical one. The aim, according to the organisers, is to introduce these traditions to a younger audience while giving long-time lovers of Urdu and Hindi poetry, classical music and qawwali a home in the city.

The SAMAA Bazaar opens with the gates on both days and runs throughout, with authentic South Asian cuisine, drinks, crafts and more. Outside food and drinks are not permitted, so the bazaar is where you will eat.

Seating zones at the amphitheatre

Seating is not numbered; within each zone it is first come, first served, which makes an early arrival genuinely useful here. The zones carry names drawn from the mehfil tradition:

• Diwan-e-Khaas (Royal): the front rows nearest the stage, with sofa seating
• Gulzar (Platinum): premium seats in the main bowl
• Mehfil (Gold): seats in the main bowl
• Bahaar (Silver): seating on the amphitheatre steps

Every category offers a single day ticket or a two-day pass covering both evenings. Gates open at 3pm, the first performance starts at 4pm, and each night wraps up around 10:30pm. Tickets do not include the nominal Zabeel Park entry fee or parking, and you will need your QR code ready on your phone for entry inside the park.

Families, rules and getting there

All ages are welcome. Anyone under 18 must be accompanied by an adult, and children under eight can enter with a free amphitheatre seat when accompanied by a ticket-holding adult. Re-entry is allowed with a valid wristband. Phone photos for personal use are welcome, but professional cameras and recording equipment are not, and entry is subject to security checks. The organisers suggest bringing a light layer for the December evenings in the open air.

The closest Metro stop is Max Metro Station (formerly Al Jafiliya) on the Red Line, a short walk from the park gates. Taxis can drop you at Zabeel Park Gate 1, 2 or 3, and parking is available at the gates subject to availability.

Who is behind Samaa

The festival is organised by Vertex Events, which has more than two decades of experience in the UAE, together with arts and culture discovery platform Culture Atlas, and is presented by Dugasta Properties. It is designed for fans of poetry, classical music, Sufi and qawwali, storytelling, Urdu and Hindi verse and subcontinental food, and it is one of the more distinctive cultural weekends on the December calendar.

For more ideas, browse our art and culture guide, see live music in our concerts in Dubai listings, check the December events calendar, or explore more things to do in Dubai.