As I sit in my room, quarantined from the rest of the world, I have spent a lot more time on the internet browsing through some random content. I’ll keep exploring and exploring, and I often find myself back or eventually searching something about bhangra. Lately, I have become more interested in the culture that has formed in the United States and how the competitions have taken shape here. I have been looking at multiple videos of bhangra competitions in the past few years, and I wondered how it became formalized and organized like this. Bhangra was traditionally a small affair in towns and villages, and now, we see the world dancing!
In the start of the 90s, college students began to band together and form bhangra teams. The students simply wanted to form a community where they felt they could have fun dancing together. Soon enough however, this began to spread across the nation. Teams began popping up at numerous colleges with big South Asian populations. Beyond the South Asian community, all communities were excited by the dance and some joined the teams too. Originally, there were a few teams that would simply perform at local cultural events as exhibitions. When the growth of teams swept the nation, there began to be competitions popping across the country as well.
The first bhangra collegiate competition to start in the United States is Bhangra Blowout. Formed in 1993, a group of Indians at The George Washington University decided to create a space for students on these bhangra teams to showcase their talent. Similar to running a business, the competition organizers had to coordinate multiple components of the competition including lodging, funding, sponsorships, and ultimately teams. In the beginning, it was a local community effort. As it started to grow and word began to spread, more teams began to form and compete as well. The competition has been running for 27 years now and is considered to be one of the biggest South Asian events. People from around the country and the world will come to watch the competition and cheer on the teams.
More competitions were organized across the nation, and teams were able to continue their expression of happiness and joy through bhangra on numerous stages. To be able to do this is very exciting for college students. They are able to stay connected to their culture or be introduced to a new culture. Furthermore, they dedicate a lot of time and effort to dancing, and it feels exhilarating to finally show this time and effort to the world. Teams will often have practices 3-4 days a week for 2 hours each day. A few weeks before competitions, practices may jump to 6 days a week and might be longer.
Beyond collegiate and independent teams, there has also been a spark in dance classes and workshops centered around the bhangra dance style. Indian studios have been opening up to teach younger generations about the dance in hopes that they will keep the spirit alive. Some pre-existing dance organizations have also incorporated some elements of bhangra into their style as well. Ultimately, bhangra has spread across the nation. Whether you are at a college campus or in a city, look for bhangra events. Chances are, you’ll find something.
I really like the image that you included in this post as it shows exactly what you are talking about. I had no idea that it has become so popular and it is kind of cool that it is able to incorporate other skills that students can show off about managing competitions.
I always find indian dance competitions so interesting so I really enjoy reading your passion blog. I am really into the fusion teams and am even thinking about joining Penn States. It is interesting to see the other type of dance(Bhangra) and what goes into it. I am not as familiar about Bhangra so it is nice to learn about it.