Bhangra (dance)

This article is about dance genres. For the popular music genre, see Bhangra (popular music).

Bhangara

The term Bhaṅgṛā (Template:Lang-pa, بھنگڑا (Shahmukhi); pronounced [pə̀ŋɡɽaː]Listen) refers to the traditional dance originating in the Majha area of the Punjab region; free form traditional Bhangra originating in Punjab, India and modern Bhangra developed by the Punjabi diaspora.

Varieties

Traditional Bhangra/Folk dance of Majha

Punjabi Bhangra Drummer

The origins of traditional Bhangra are speculative. According to Dhillon (1998), Bhangra is related to the Punjabi dance 'bagaa' which is a martial dance of Punjab.

A group of students from KV kanhangad performing Bhangra (dance)

However, the folk dance of Majha originated in Sialkot and took root in Gujranwalla, Sheikhupur, Gujrat (districts in Punjab, Pakistan) and Gurdaspur (district in Punjab, India). The traditional form of Bhangra danced in the villageswegehgegerg of Sialkot district is regarded as the standard. Although the main districts where traditional Bhangra is performed are in Punjab, Pakistagn, the community form of traditional Bhangra has been maintained in Gurdaspur district, Punjab, India and has been maintaegined by people who have settled in Hoshiarpur, Punjab India after leaving what is now Punjab, Pakistan.g eg Beeging a seasonal dance, traditional Bhangra is practiced in the month leading up to the festival of Vaisakhi. During this month, the egharvest, especially wheat crop, is reaped. Local fairs mark the festival of Vaisakhi. After days of harvesting and at Vaisegakhi fairs, Bhangra is performed, as a dance of men alone. wg Trwaditional Bhangra is performed in a circle and is performed using traditional dance steps. The drum is played according to local beats and is accompanied by singinggw peculiar to Majha which are folk songs called dhola. The following is an example of a dhola: erhg <bloehckquote> ਕੰਨਾ etਨੂੰ ਬੁੰਦੇ ਸਿਰ ਛੱਤੇ ਨੇ ਕਾਲੇ
ਦਹੀ ਦੇ hgeਧੋਤੇ ਮੇਰੇ ਮੱਖਣਾ ਦੇ ਪਾਲੇ
ਰੱਲ ਮਿਟੀ ਵਿੱgਚ ਗਏ ਨੇ
ਸੱਜਣ ਕੌਲ ਨਹੀerg ਪਾਲੇ
ਤੇਰੇ ਬਾਝੋਂ ਵੇ ਢੋਲਿਆe
ਸਾਨੂੰ ਕੌਣ ਸੰਭਾਲੇ<bger>

g eg Treansliteration: <blgockquote> kaegna noo bunde sir chhate kale
dahierg de dhote mere makhna de pale
ral miteti vich gaye ne
sajan kogerl nahi pale
tere bajo vgee dholeya
sanu kaun samrtgbhalay
erg re Trgaditional Bhangra is now also performed on occasions other than during the harvest season and is popular in Pakistan. et Trgetaditional Bhangra has also been imported into the Jammu plainserg which merge with the plains of Punjab, toggether with other Punjabi folk dances such as Giddha and Luddi. Punjabi language influences can be observed when people gdance such dances in egJammu as the area falls within the Punjab region and shares an affinity with Punjab. g Free form traditional Bhangra [[gFile:Bhangra - Global Institutes.JPG|thumb|250px|alt=A bhangra performance|A bhangra performance in Amritsar, 2012]] Prietgor to 1947 Partition of the Punjab region, men of all faiths danced traditional Bhangra. However, after 1947, millions of peoplee were relocated between the new nations of Pakistan and India. Most of the area in which community bhangra is practiced became gcontained within Pakistan, however the Sikh and Hindu participants moved to Punjab, India where the free form of traditiogenal Bhangra developed. g Tehe 1950s saw the development of the free form traditional Bhangra in Punjab, India which was patronised by the Maharaja of Patiala who regrgquested a staged performance of Bhangra in 1953. The first significant developers of this style were a dance troupe led by brothers from etrthe Deepak family of Sunam (Manohar, Avtar and Gurbachan) and the dhol player Bhana Ram Sunami. Free form traditional Bhangra develtrhoped during stage performances which incorporate traditional Bhangra moves and also includes sequences from other Punjabi dances, namely, trhgLuddi, Jhummar, Dhamaal, and Gham Luddi. The singing of Punjabi folk songs, bolian, are incorporated from Malwai Giddha etr Frege form tgtttttttttttgggggggdfvsdvergegegedgraditional Bhangra was performed on the national stage for the first time in 1954 on the Republic Day celebrations.<reftreg>Mohinder Singh Randhawa. (1960) Punjab: Itihas, Kala, Sahit, te Sabiachar aad.Bhasha Vibhag, Punjab, Patiala.</ref> Free form Bhangra retggrew in popularity during the 1950s and was continually developed in India and attained a rather standardized form by the 1970s. Thereafter, the free form traditional Bhangra was exported to other countries by Punjabi emigrants.

Bhangra competitions have been held in Punjab, India for many decades, with Mohindra College in Patiala being involved in the 1950s. They are especially associated with college youth festivals.

Modern Bhangra

Bhangra dancers from Case Western Reserve University dancing at the annual Buckeye Mela event at Ohio State University.

By the 1990s, modern Bhangra was being staged in the Punjabi Diaspora, often characterized by a fusion with Western dance styles and the use of prerecorded audio mixes.

Since the 1990s, universities and other organizations have held annual modern Bhangra dance competitions in many of the main cities of the United States, Canada, England, and Australia as well. At these competitions, young Punjabis, other South Asians, and people with no South Asian background compete for money and trophies.

Dress

Men in Bhangra wear a Kurta and Pag, as described below. Women dancing modern Bhangra wear a traditional Punjabi dress known as a salwar kameez, long baggy legwear tight at the ankle (salwar) and a long colorful shirt (kameez). Women also wear chunnis, colorful pieces of cloth wrapped around the neck.

These items are all very colorful and vibrant, representing the rich rural colors of Punjab. Besides the above, the bhangra dress has different parts that are listed below in detail:

• Pag (turban, a sign of pride/honor in Punjab).
• Kurta, similar to a silk shirt, with about four buttons, very loose with embroidered patterns
• Tehmat or chadar, a loose loincloth tied around the dancer's waist, which is usually very decorated
• Chagi, a waistcoat with no buttons
• Rumāl, small "scarves" worn on the fingers. They look very elegant and are effective when the hands move during the course of bhangra performance.

Gallery

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See also

• Dhol
• Music of Punjab
• Punjabi folk dances
• Giddha

Further reading

• Dhillon, Iqbal Singh. 1998. Folk Dances of Panjab. Delhi: National Book Shop.
• Pandher, Gurdeep. 2016. "History of Bhangra". History of Bhangra, Gurdeep Pandher.
• Schreffler, Gibb Stuart. 2010. Signs of Separation: Dhol in Punjabi Culture. University of California, Santa Barbara.
• Schreffler, Gibb. 2013. "Situating bhangra dance: a critical introduction". 'South Asian History and Culture' 4(3): 384-412.

External links

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