BhangraFeverCommittee
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We are pleased to announce the official judging panel for Bhangra Fever 5.
Harkiran Kullar, Havish Bhalani, Kinnell Shah, Sapan Gandhi and Sumit Hira.
Harkiran Kullar
Harkiran Kullar has been a part of the circuit for 7 years. She is the founder of PANJ Bhangra and coached all three of the academy teams; the boys, girls and coed and has led the teams to 12 trophies and many best dancer awards. In 2008 Harkiran took a bold step in becoming the only female to ever coach an all guys competitive team. In the summer of 2009 she spent 6 months in Punjab learning the execution of folk bhangra from dancers. Harkiran founded ShopBhangra in 2009, a source which provides outfits and bhangra props to teams. Till date she has worked with over 100 teams and has provided them with the resources that they need. In 2012 Harkiran was the program coordinator for VIBC. In 2012 she formed the West Side Alliance (WSA) which is a collaboration of the most talented veteran and new female dancers from the West Coast. Harkiran has been selected to judge many competitions including Notorious Bhangra , Bhangra in the Burgh, VPD . Bhangra State of Mind and many more.
Havish Bhalani
Havish Bhalani has been an active member of the Bhangra community as a dancer, captain, choreographer, coach, and competition organizer. His bhangra career began in 2004 when he joined VCU Bhangra and went on to become captain from 2005-2008. In 2006 he co-founded Pyare Putt Ankhiley (PPA), a traditional live bhangra team and was on the executive committee of Apna Virsa Apna Punjab Bhangra Competition (AVAP) in 2008 and 2009. After graduation Havish continue coaching VCU Bhangra until 2010 and went on to coach DC Bhangra Crew (DCBC) from 2010-2011. Havish also has experience from dancing in the Garba/Raas community where he co-founded VCU Raas and danced with Drexel Dandiya. Overall he has competed at 30 competitions all across the United States and Canada and received a trophy at 22 of them, while the teams he has coached placed at 13 out of 14 competitions. Havish has been a judge at Bhangra Blowout, Aaj Ka Dhamaka, and Nach Ke Dikha.
Kinnell Shah
Kinnell Shah has been dancing and choreographing Bhangra since 2006. In the last 7 years, Kinnell has competed at over 30 bhangra competitions across North America and has brought home trophies from more than half of them. He is also a founding member of FAUJ Bhangra and plays an active role in the success of the team. In addition, he has competed at prominent garba-raas & fusion competitions and was initially trained in jazz, ballet and hip-hop at the nationally recognized Charlotte Klein Dance Studio. His eclectic dance experiences, which have given him a unique perspective on the art-form of bhangra, coupled with his successes in the bhangra circuit, have been invaluable assets in judging. As a judge, Kinnell is detail-oriented, analytical, able to discern both the folk and creative elements of a routine and strives to evaluate performances as objectively as possible. He has previously judged 6 other competitions, most recently Boiler Bhangra 2013 in West Lafayette, IN and Vaisakhi Mela 2013 in Cleveland, OH.
Sapan Gandhi
Sapan Gandhi is a Bhangra dancer and competition judge from Philadelphia, PA. He served as the captain of Drexel Bhangra from 2008-2010, leading his team to numerous placings at national competitions, including Dhol Di Awaz, Bhangra in the Burgh, Virsa Punjab Da, and Bhangra Blowout. Sapan has also been a successful dancer for a number of other teams on the East Coast. He has experience dancing and placing on traditional co-ed, men’s live (Pyaare Putt Ankhiley) and men’s music (Joshiley Jawan) Bhangra teams. More recently, Sapan has brought his experience as a competition dancer and captain to multiple competitions as a judge. Presently, Sapan is a 4th year medical student at Drexel University College of Medicine.
Sumit Hira
Sumit Hira is from the Bay Area, California and attends the University California, Davis. Bhangra has been a passion of his since he was young and he has danced for over 15 years. He has competed at numerous competitions throughout the nation with a variety of bhangra teams. He is the founding captain of Bhangra Knightz and the founding director of the Bhangra Knightz Academy. Sumit has decided to step his foot into this new endeavor of judging. He has judged Bhangra State of Mind and hopes to continue judging many more competitions. He looks forward to what all these prestigious teams bring to the stage at Bhangra Fever 5.
Bhangra Fever 5 will take place on Saturday, February 8th, 2014 in Binghamton, NY.
Harkiran Kullar, Havish Bhalani, Kinnell Shah, Sapan Gandhi and Sumit Hira.
Harkiran Kullar
Harkiran Kullar has been a part of the circuit for 7 years. She is the founder of PANJ Bhangra and coached all three of the academy teams; the boys, girls and coed and has led the teams to 12 trophies and many best dancer awards. In 2008 Harkiran took a bold step in becoming the only female to ever coach an all guys competitive team. In the summer of 2009 she spent 6 months in Punjab learning the execution of folk bhangra from dancers. Harkiran founded ShopBhangra in 2009, a source which provides outfits and bhangra props to teams. Till date she has worked with over 100 teams and has provided them with the resources that they need. In 2012 Harkiran was the program coordinator for VIBC. In 2012 she formed the West Side Alliance (WSA) which is a collaboration of the most talented veteran and new female dancers from the West Coast. Harkiran has been selected to judge many competitions including Notorious Bhangra , Bhangra in the Burgh, VPD . Bhangra State of Mind and many more.
Havish Bhalani
Havish Bhalani has been an active member of the Bhangra community as a dancer, captain, choreographer, coach, and competition organizer. His bhangra career began in 2004 when he joined VCU Bhangra and went on to become captain from 2005-2008. In 2006 he co-founded Pyare Putt Ankhiley (PPA), a traditional live bhangra team and was on the executive committee of Apna Virsa Apna Punjab Bhangra Competition (AVAP) in 2008 and 2009. After graduation Havish continue coaching VCU Bhangra until 2010 and went on to coach DC Bhangra Crew (DCBC) from 2010-2011. Havish also has experience from dancing in the Garba/Raas community where he co-founded VCU Raas and danced with Drexel Dandiya. Overall he has competed at 30 competitions all across the United States and Canada and received a trophy at 22 of them, while the teams he has coached placed at 13 out of 14 competitions. Havish has been a judge at Bhangra Blowout, Aaj Ka Dhamaka, and Nach Ke Dikha.
Kinnell Shah
Kinnell Shah has been dancing and choreographing Bhangra since 2006. In the last 7 years, Kinnell has competed at over 30 bhangra competitions across North America and has brought home trophies from more than half of them. He is also a founding member of FAUJ Bhangra and plays an active role in the success of the team. In addition, he has competed at prominent garba-raas & fusion competitions and was initially trained in jazz, ballet and hip-hop at the nationally recognized Charlotte Klein Dance Studio. His eclectic dance experiences, which have given him a unique perspective on the art-form of bhangra, coupled with his successes in the bhangra circuit, have been invaluable assets in judging. As a judge, Kinnell is detail-oriented, analytical, able to discern both the folk and creative elements of a routine and strives to evaluate performances as objectively as possible. He has previously judged 6 other competitions, most recently Boiler Bhangra 2013 in West Lafayette, IN and Vaisakhi Mela 2013 in Cleveland, OH.
Sapan Gandhi
Sapan Gandhi is a Bhangra dancer and competition judge from Philadelphia, PA. He served as the captain of Drexel Bhangra from 2008-2010, leading his team to numerous placings at national competitions, including Dhol Di Awaz, Bhangra in the Burgh, Virsa Punjab Da, and Bhangra Blowout. Sapan has also been a successful dancer for a number of other teams on the East Coast. He has experience dancing and placing on traditional co-ed, men’s live (Pyaare Putt Ankhiley) and men’s music (Joshiley Jawan) Bhangra teams. More recently, Sapan has brought his experience as a competition dancer and captain to multiple competitions as a judge. Presently, Sapan is a 4th year medical student at Drexel University College of Medicine.
Sumit Hira
Sumit Hira is from the Bay Area, California and attends the University California, Davis. Bhangra has been a passion of his since he was young and he has danced for over 15 years. He has competed at numerous competitions throughout the nation with a variety of bhangra teams. He is the founding captain of Bhangra Knightz and the founding director of the Bhangra Knightz Academy. Sumit has decided to step his foot into this new endeavor of judging. He has judged Bhangra State of Mind and hopes to continue judging many more competitions. He looks forward to what all these prestigious teams bring to the stage at Bhangra Fever 5.
Bhangra Fever 5 will take place on Saturday, February 8th, 2014 in Binghamton, NY.
