French town gears up for Bollywood-themed Lemon Festival

The finishing touches to huge sculptures crafted out of citrus fruits were being made on Friday as the southern French Riviera town of Menton readied itself for the 85th edition of its "Fete du Citron" ("Lemon Festival").

Visitors to the Bollywood-themed festival, which starts on Saturday, would be greeted by several parades featuring floats, dancing and music, as well as a "Holi Party" in a nod to India's popular festival of colours, Efe news agency reported.

About 240,000 visitors descend on Menton for the event that requires 145 tonnes of citrus fruits to produce, according to the organisers.

Images showed workers positioning oranges on the ground as they decorated an area around an elephant sculpture.

Due to the length of the event, which last 20 days, and inevitable decay of the fruits on display, 12 designated individuals would be tasked with replacing any deteriorating oranges and lemons, the organisers said.

The festival will end on March 4.

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