I love the Festival of India. I go every year. Granted, I work at the Richmond Metro Convention Center on weekends, so I’m there anyway, but this is such a great event and it’s free.
Music, great food, and dancing. Unlike so many festivals where the food is sub-par due to cooking mass quantities and reheating them at locations with difficult logistics (i.e. The Vegetarian Festival), the food at the Indian Festival is actually unique and sometime better then what you can get at the restaurants. The reason is, that in addition to restaurants providing the food, they have local volunteers preparing specialties you sometimes can’t get in restaurants. I can never remember the name of my favorite dish, but this will be the 4th year running that I manage to walk down to the exhibition hall for both lunch AND diner and get one. It is so rare to find such a great exotic treat that is vegetarian and you can only buy it once a year! The stand is always the first one on left as you enter the hall, right behind the guys selling food tickets.
They take a piece of dough, and fill it with a very spicy lentil mixture. Then, they fry it in oil so it looks like a pregnant pancake. They cook them fresh to order (well you sometimes have to insist that you want one that is hot and just came out of the oil). They crack the top, and poke a hole in the bubbly crater-like surface, and like the reverse of a volcano, they pour in a runny homemade yogurt, then a tamarind sauce and finally a bright green cilantro chutney. They throw in some chopped red onion, salt if you want it, and then if you are very daring, ground red hot cayenne. It is the messiest meal you’ll ever eat! and oh so wonderful. I will tell you to bring your own water to drink, I’ve had more than one person desperately ask where I bought mine, their mouth on fire, but I’ve never seen any for sale there, although I’m sure you could find a mango lasse. You then get to sit down at one of the huge circular tables (usually you make new friends here sitting with strangers) and watch the adorable Indian-American children of Richmond dance and perform their hearts out.

So, now that I’ve convinced you it’s worth the drive, let me give you the details of the Festival of India. It is Saturday Oct. 6th 11 a.m. - 9 p.m.
Sunday Oct. 7th from 12 noon - 8 p.m.
The festival is totally free, food tickets can be purchased with cash.
The address of the Convention Center is 405 N. 3rd St, at 3rd and Marshall. The exhibition hall is on the 5th Street side of the building, but parking is easier on the 3rd Street Side. You can pay to park in a garage ($6) or park for free in the neighborhoods (Clay Street is a good one). They do not enforce the 2 hour limit on weekends.
And, while you are there, check out the great jazz at the Second Street Festival one block over, a great outdoor street festival and party.