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![\"Kakosan\"](\"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/06\/Kakosan7.jpeg\")
Romani dancers with Kakosan<\/p>\nIf you\u2019ve never heard of \u2018Gypsy dancing\u2019, Juice Vamosi thinks that\u2019s precisely the point.<\/p>\n
\u201cThere\u2019s nowhere else online to watch it,\u201d he said. \u201cThat\u2019s why it\u2019s going viral.\u201d<\/p>\n
He\u2019s right. The traditional Romani dance group he co-runs, Kakosan, has clocked over 25 million views on TikTok and Facebook, captivating people across the globe with lightning-fast footwork, proud expressions, and a fiery joy that leaps through the screen.<\/p>\n
But beyond the shimmer of sequins and music is something deeper. These dances are not just performances,\u00a0 they\u2019re declarations.<\/p>\n
\u201cWhen two Romani people dance,\u201d Juice said, \u201cthey\u2019re not just dancing with each other.<\/p>\n
\u201cThey\u2019re competing to best express a celebration of an identity that\u2019s so often hidden from the outside world. The dance becomes a vibrant, fiery act of resistance and joy.<\/p>\n
\u201cA way to say: \u2018We are here. And this is who we are.\u2019\u201d<\/p>\n
Kakosan and Greater Manchester\u2019s Romani Community
\nRomani dancers with Kakosan<\/p>\n
That joy is hard-won. In Britain today, Romani and Traveller people remain the most discriminated-against ethnic group in the country. According to a University of Birmingham\/YouGov study, nearly 45% of people surveyed admitted negative views of Gypsies and Irish Travellers. Across Europe, the numbers are even worse.<\/p>\n
Juice has felt this stigma firsthand. \u201cI\u2019ve been monitoring this since 2015,\u201d he said. \u201cIt\u2019s consistent. We\u2019re the most disliked ethnic group in the UK and Europe. I go to the doctor, to fill up petrol, and I\u2019m treated like a criminal.\u201d<\/p>\n
The name of their dance charity, Kakosan, comes from a traditional Romani greeting. \u201cIt\u2019s the first question between two Gypsy people meeting,\u201d Juice explained. \u201cYou\u2019re really asking: \u2018What cast do you belong to? What group?\u2019 It\u2019s a way in. A cultural key.\u201d<\/p>\n
That idea, of opening doors and breaking barriers, runs through everything Kakosan does. Run by Juice and his wife Maria Palmai from Oldham<\/a>, the charity offers language classes, food workshops, dance rehearsals, and school outreach to educate people about Romani life.<\/p>\n Their message is simple: Romani culture is beautiful and alive. But for far too long, misunderstood.<\/p>\n How to challenge Romani racism? Based at the Bolton Socialist Club thanks to the tireless support of trustee Neil McAllister, Kakosan has become a thriving hub for dancers and families from across the North West. \u201cWe\u2019ve got people coming in from Bolton<\/a>, Oldham, Preston, Blackburn, Rochdale<\/a>, and Horwich,\u201d Juice said.<\/p>\n \u201cWe meet regularly \u2013 and we mix generations. Our youngest dancer is five. Our oldest is sixty.\u201d<\/p>\n Watching their TikTok clips, you\u2019d be forgiven for assuming they\u2019re professionally trained. But behind the glamour is grit. Juice credits dance instructor Michael Syletsky, an international performer, for coaching the group.<\/p>\n \u201cIt\u2019s fast. It\u2019s competitive. And it\u2019s never just for show. It means something.\u201d<\/p>\n What it means, Juice said, is pride.<\/p>\n \u201cThe kids we work with? They\u2019re starting to walk taller. They\u2019re proud to represent our culture now. They grab the mic. They speak on camera. They get standing ovations. At Factory International<\/a>, a five-year-old girl from our group danced, and the crowd got to their feet. That tells you something.\u201d<\/p>\n A culture hidden in plain sight<\/p>\n Despite centuries of presence in the UK, Romani people remain woefully underrepresented in national life. Few schools teach their history. Few public figures identify openly as Roma. And very few institutions platform their voices \u2013 until recently.<\/p>\n The Kakosan group are currently collaborating with the Whitworth Art Gallery<\/a> on what Juice calls \u201can amazing exhibition \u2013 the first Roma-themed one in Manchester.\u201d At its heart are the works of renowned artist Ma\u0142gorzata Mirga-Tas, whose tapestries subvert centuries-old depictions of Roma people as sinister outsiders, instead celebrating their stories and spirit.<\/p>\n \u201cShe\u2019s changing those stereotypes,\u201d Juice said. \u201cShe puts emotions, characters, and histories back into the picture. Her work has been shown from Japan to New York \u2013 and now here, in Manchester.\u201d<\/p>\n The exhibition runs until September and includes dance, music, and storytelling. The day before Kakosan\u2019s big performance at G\u00f3b\u00e9fest, Manchester\u2019s celebration of Central and Eastern European culture, they\u2019ll present a story called Bendyalo, about a young Gypsy boy who travels to Manchester to get educated and bring knowledge back to his community.<\/p>\n \u201cIt\u2019s based on a real story passed down through generations,\u201d Juice said. \u201cIt\u2019s about hope.\u201d<\/p>\n \u2018The only place we go is McDonald\u2019s\u2019<\/p>\n There is a painful paradox at the heart of this cultural flowering. For many Romani people, everyday life in Britain remains one of invisibility and exclusion.<\/p>\n \u201cYou don\u2019t see Gypsy families in restaurants. Or pubs. Or schools. Or public buildings,\u201d Juice said. \u201cWe live in deep isolation. McDonald\u2019s is the only place you might see us together.\u201d<\/p>\n In this context, Kakosan\u2019s workshops become radical acts. \u201cPeople watch our videos and say: \u2018Where is this club? Can I come too?\u2019 They want to join. And that\u2019s amazing. But it\u2019s also sad \u2013 because there aren\u2019t any dedicated Romani community centres in all of Greater Manchester.\u201d<\/p>\n The long-term dream, Juice said, is to build one.<\/p>\n From campsites to the classroom<\/p>\n Many of Kakosan\u2019s members, especially women, have faced extreme marginalisation. Some arrived in the UK from parts of Eastern Europe where Roma people were barred from school or even shot for stepping into towns.<\/p>\n \u201cWe had a group of women who couldn\u2019t read or write,\u201d Juice said. \u201cNow, thanks to Maria\u2019s work, they sing. They\u2019ve performed at the Whitworth. That\u2019s their first taste of education.\u201d<\/p>\n Maria\u2019s name is mentioned often, and always with love. \u201cNone of this would be possible without her,\u201d Juice said. \u201cShe handles the women\u2019s groups, the social media, the kids \u2013 everything. In our culture, family decisions override individual ones. So the fact we run this as a family? It builds trust. That\u2019s why it works.\u201d<\/p>\n Their home life and charity work blend seamlessly. \u201cWe\u2019ve got four kids, three boys and a girl. Our youngest is two. We\u2019ve also got two grandchildren, so a big family. But our community sees our whole family leading this. It\u2019s not just Juice, the educated guy with three degrees. It\u2019s a family, like theirs.\u201d<\/p>\n Changing the story around Romani communities<\/p>\n Juice is also a filmmaker, and his work has appeared on the BBC and Channel 4. His documentaries, like Gypsy Matchmaker and Keeping Up With The Khans, explore controversial topics like forced removals, racism, and life expectancy gaps.<\/p>\n He produced an extremely poignant BBC Documentary<\/a> with Stacey Dooley exploring anti-Romani prejudice in Hungary, which you can find out more about here<\/a><\/p>\n \u201cWhen people see my films, they think it\u2019s fake,\u201d he said. \u201cThat\u2019s how deep the misunderstanding runs. They can\u2019t believe this is real life, that people are still being treated like this.\u201d<\/p>\n He\u2019s filmed everything from racist mayors to children whose only dream is to become a school cleaner, not because they lack ambition, but because they\u2019ve never been allowed to imagine anything more.<\/p>\n \u201cThat\u2019s what we\u2019re changing,\u201d he said. \u201cThrough dance, through art, through language. We\u2019re showing our kids, and the world, that we are human. And we are here.\u201d<\/p>\n Come and join in with Kakosan<\/p>\n On the 21st of June, Kakosan will perform at G\u00f3b\u00e9fest in Cathedral Gardens with a group of 15 young dancers. It\u2019s a chance to experience Romani culture firsthand \u2013 and to be part of something beautiful.<\/p>\n \u201cOur message is: Come and join us,\u201d Juice said. \u201cCelebrate with us. Learn with us. Be curious.\u201d<\/p>\n Later in the year, the group hopes to secure more funding, create a dedicated Roma arts centre, and, one day, build a school. \u201cThe schools we visit now tell us the kids are buzzing. They say, \u2018Why don\u2019t you open your own?\u2019 Maybe one day, we will.\u201d<\/p>\n Until then, you\u2019ll find them dancing at Bolton<\/a> Socialist Club, hosting language classes, cooking up traditional Romani food \u2013 and uploading viral videos that break through centuries of silence.<\/p>\n \u201cWe\u2019re not here to beg for pity,\u201d Juice said. \u201cWe\u2019re here to show you something beautiful. And if we can break even one stereotype, then it\u2019s worth it.\u201d<\/p>\n You can find out more about Kakosan on their website by clicking here<\/a><\/strong><\/p>\n See Kakosan at G\u00f3b\u00e9fest<\/p>\n Kakosan will be performing at Cathedral Gardens, Manchester, Saturday the 22nd of June, 4PM. You can find out more about G\u00f3b\u00e9fest by clicking here<\/a>.<\/p>\n The Whitworth Gallery will be showcasing Roma-Polish artist Ma\u0142gorzata Mirga-Tas\u2019s work, produced in collaboration with Kakosan. Mirga-Tas creates elaborate, colourful, textile-based compositions that feature striking portraits of Roma people, originating from the artist\u2019s response to art history and research into the photographic archives, both public and personal.<\/p>\n These include portraits of survivors of the Holocaust, during which hundreds of thousands of Romani people were killed.<\/p>\n The artist creates works using fabrics, some of which belonged to the individuals on display, chosen to best reflect their personalities. It\u2019s open until the 7th of September, you can find out more about that here<\/a><\/p>\n Follow them on TikTok at @kakosan<\/a>.<\/p>\n \t\t\t\t
\n![\"Kakosan\"](\"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/06\/Kakosan10.jpeg\")
Kakosan outside the Bolton Socialist Club<\/p>\n![\"Kakosan\"](\"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/06\/Kakosan1.jpeg\")
<\/p>\n![\"Kakosan\"](\"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/06\/Kakosan5.jpeg\")
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