[6] It started as a gathering in the family's living room and grew into a monthly storytelling evening in a small tea house.

In that same year the Mezrab Storytelling School was founded by Farnoosh Farnia and Raphael Rodan, and the team was expanded with Rogier Lammers as the music programmer and Karl Giesriegl as the creative director.

[10] Since then the Mezrab has a cultural program of over 300 events per year,[4] with in addition to storytelling, music concerts, open mic evenings, dance, theatre and comedy.

[4] The jury motivated their choice as follows: "Mezrab is a unique cultural center for storytelling, a warm home for many Amsterdammers.

The jury finds it inspiring how Mezrab has been making an authentic and colorful contribution to our city for years in a sustainable way.