Bhangra Fever 4 Review and Feedback

[BhangraFeverCommittee]

The Bhangra Fever Committee and the Binghamton Bhangra team would like to thank everyone for making Bhangra Fever 4 a tremendous success. It truly was exciting to see all of the hard work transform into a reality over the weekend.


We would like to thank all of the teams for being very respectful and cooperative. Everyone who took the stage last night gave nothing less than their best effort. The performances were truly amazing. I'm glad to report that the theater was packed. Last night undoubtedly featured the largest audience we have ever had at Bhangra Fever.


We would like to thank Harjot from GTV for making it out to Bhangra Fever. It has been a great experience working with him; he really is the man. Thank you to Waleed, Karmjot and Harman for judging. Also, a huge thank you to Ricky Jatt and Klasikhz and for an amazing performance, and to Raj Minocha and Klasikhz for making the Bhangra Fever after party the most memorable yet. And thank you to Jaggi for being an awesome MC. Lastly, thanks to our official hotel, the Holiday Inn Binghamton, for being so accommodating to the teams and those who came to watch the show.


Congratulations to all of the placing teams - Nachde Gabru Punjab De (NGPD), Da Real Punjabiz (DRP), Cornell Bhangra and Bhangra Empire!


We are looking forward to feedback and reviews from teams or anyone who may have attended Bhangra Fever 4. Annual feedback and review helps us make our competition better the following year. Feedback and reviews are especially encouraged this year because it is our comeback year and we are very interested in hearing what everyone has to say.

Please feel free to share your thoughts below!

Bhangra Fever is back on track! Look forward to Bhangra Fever 5 next year!

 

[Shawn Johal]

Pretty fun competition. Loved performing and even though I lost in Rock Paper Scissors at the mixer, I enjoyed it. It was a great competition to start off at with NGPD and I would love to come back.

 

[klotia]

Great Competition, really enjoyed the atmosphere and loved performing on that stage NGPD although it was a bit slippery.

 

[KaranveerP]

Had an amazing time while we were there, it was great meeting the other teams and gaining some stage experience

 

[nkrishnan]

Had a really great time this weekend, great venue and the committee was really helpful in answering our questions and easy to work with. Really awesome and diverse lineup and the afterparty was a ton of fun. The hotel was also a great choice, and it was nice that it was within walking distance of the afterparty. Would just give a few points of constructive criticism to make the next time even better:
1) Though we sent our mix on time in wav format, the backup CD that we burned as a last resort was used instead. Because of a small scratch this didn't play during our tech time and we ended up not being able to do a full run through. It would be good to make sure tech has our mix before we get there rather than rely on us to bring it
2) There definitely should have been an easier way to get into the after party. Even though we bought tickets they weren't even checked and it took us forever for the bouncers to even let people inside
3) The stage was really slippery. Not sure if that was just the stage itself but if that is something fixable that definitely would have avoided some slips
4) The mixer was overall a bit arbitrary. Would have been nicer to do more competitive mixer games that were shorter rather than just two really long ones. Alot of teams have to do a lot of stuff the night before the competition so more succinct mixers are preferred, at least in our case.

that's all I can think of for now, but really glad with how the competition went congrats to the organizing committee

 

[DamanSingh]

1) Though we sent our mix on time in wav format, the backup CD that we burned as a last resort was used instead. Because of a small scratch this didn't play during our tech time and we ended up not being able to do a full run through. It would be good to make sure tech has our mix before we get there rather than rely on us to bring it
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Yeah, the hard drive of my laptop, which contained all of the mixes in proper format, crashed on the night of the mixer. I tried recovering some of the mixes, which were in proper format, ready to be burned, but didn't have much luck. I apologize for the inconvenience there. But, overall, rehearsals went smoothly, and right on schedule. On a side note, it is your responsibility to ensure that your CD is working properly prior to rehearsal time.


As for the stage being a little slippery, that's something that is certainly warranting some attention on our part. We will definitely look into it, and hope to do something about it for Bhangra Fever 5.


I'm glad you had a good time! Your feedback will certainly be kept in mind for next year.

 

[Kacker]

2) There definitely should have been an easier way to get into the after party. Even though we bought tickets they weren't even checked and it took us forever for the bouncers to even let people inside
3) The stage was really slippery. Not sure if that was just the stage itself but if that is something fixable that definitely would have avoided some slips
4) The mixer was overall a bit arbitrary. Would have been nicer to do more competitive mixer games that were shorter rather than just two really long ones. Alot of teams have to do a lot of stuff the night before the competition so more succinct mixers are preferred, at least in our case.

2) We definitely want to work out some sort of VIP service for teams and others involved with the competition to get in to the afterparty next year. We had to wait outside in that mob of a line forever too.

3) We had actually danced on that stage for a different student group's show earlier in the year and felt how slippery it was. When we brought it up with the theatre staff they said "that's just the way the stage is and there's nothing we can do about it." I'm not sure if that's actually the case or if they didn't want to deal with it, but either way we apologize and next year we will try to be more transparent with the teams beforehand so they can prepare accordingly or try to be more assertive with the theatre staff to fix the issue.

4) As for the mixer, we actually had a few more games planned, but hadn't anticipated the games that we did play would take so much time. This is definitely something we will work on for next year though, others have brought this up too.

Glad you had a great time though!

 

[DamanSingh]

2) We definitely want to work out some sort of VIP service for teams and others involved with the competition to get in to the afterparty next year. We had to wait outside in that mob of a line forever too.

haha yeah, definitely. The after party was packed! The after party venue for Bhangra Fever 3 is smaller, so I wasn't expecting such a large gathering at the door this year, primarily because we secured a bigger venue. I know a lot of people turned themselves away after standing in subzero temperatures for twenty or so minutes. I was hoping that wouldn't be the case. Definitely something we'll work on for next year - maybe a bigger venue, and as Kevin mentioned, definitely a VIP system for performers.

and props to FCB for starting the after-after-party in the ballroom of the hotel 8)

 

[Saab]

2) We definitely want to work out some sort of VIP service for teams and others involved with the competition to get in to the afterparty next year. We had to wait outside in that mob of a line forever too.

haha yeah, definitely. The after party was packed! The after party venue for Bhangra Fever 3 is smaller, so I wasn't expecting such a large gathering at the door this year, primarily because we secured a bigger venue. I know a lot of people turned themselves away after standing in subzero temperatures for twenty or so minutes. I was hoping that wouldn't be the case. Definitely something we'll work on for next year - maybe a bigger venue, and as Kevin mentioned, definitely a VIP system for performers.

and props to FCB for starting the after-after-party in the ballroom of the hotel 8)

Glad we could be of some assistance.

 

[siddyp]

First off, Bhangra Fever 4 was an AMAZING time, and you guys as a committee should have no regrets as to how it was run. Shit happens everywhere, and we live and learn. You guys did a very good job and here are some spots where I think you could improve:

Mixer: As some said, make it shorter than planned. The musical chairs was really really fun. Could have been the only thing that happened before food and team selection and the mixer would have been a great success. The limbo was a cool idea, but it was eh, and dragged on. Biggest problem I had was that these games played a part in selection of spots in the show. Having pizza for dinner wasn't very productive for our bodies the day before the competition. You're better off getting something like pasta.

TO ALL committees: Please leave spot in the show selection up to picking out of a hat or something else that makes it completely random. playing games to select your spot and having to turn stuff in earlier than other teams is just not necessary. Leave it completely random so all teams have a fair shot of going first or last.

Tech time: Transportation, working with the staff of fever, the event staff, and everything else was amazing. Very smooth, very personable, and willing to make whatever needs to happen, happen.

Day of show: Getting no food wasn't the end of the world, but just took a lot of time. If you can get the proper funding, please provide subway sandwiches to the teams. - It will go a long way in show preparation.

Having very limited water supply wasn't good. We got 2 cases of water which we went through in under an hour. We kept re-filling at the water fountain which is fine and conservative (green), but wasn't as convenient as having say 2 more cases.

Show ran great and pretty on time, but that stage was mad slippery. i would suggest having some sort of mopping team to add some moisture to the floor between performances or something to battle the problem.

I had no problem with judges meetings running more than 5 mins. 5 mins is never enough. These meetings SHOULD be like 10+ mins long.

After party - has been talked about.

We were told one of our team members would get a ride to Syracuse sunday morning, but we couldn't get a hold of anyone to get him to the airport so we drove him ourselves. Had we known earlier that this was going to be the case, we would have arranged for it, but it was just real last minute.

All in all, minor speed bumps in a very well run, pretty much stress free weekend.

Thanks and hope you guys can improve from this feedback!

 

[Saab]

First off, Bhangra Fever 4 was an AMAZING time, and you guys as a committee should have no regrets as to how it was run. Shit happens everywhere, and we live and learn. You guys did a very good job and here are some spots where I think you could improve:

Mixer: As some said, make it shorter than planned. The musical chairs was really really fun. Could have been the only thing that happened before food and team selection and the mixer would have been a great success. The limbo was a cool idea, but it was eh, and dragged on. Biggest problem I had was that these games played a part in selection of spots in the show. Having pizza for dinner wasn't very productive for our bodies the day before the competition. You're better off getting something like pasta.

TO ALL committees: Please leave spot in the show selection up to picking out of a hat or something else that makes it completely random. playing games to select your spot and having to turn stuff in earlier than other teams is just not necessary. Leave it completely random so all teams have a fair shot of going first or last.

Tech time: Transportation, working with the staff of fever, the event staff, and everything else was amazing. Very smooth, very personable, and willing to make whatever needs to happen, happen.

Day of show: Getting no food wasn't the end of the world, but just took a lot of time. If you can get the proper funding, please provide subway sandwiches to the teams. - It will go a long way in show preparation.

Having very limited water supply wasn't good. We got 2 cases of water which we went through in under an hour. We kept re-filling at the water fountain which is fine and conservative (green), but wasn't as convenient as having say 2 more cases.

Show ran great and pretty on time, but that stage was mad slippery. i would suggest having some sort of mopping team to at some moisture to the floor between performances or something to battle the problem.

I had no problem with judges meetings running more than 5 mins. 5 mins is never enough. These meetings SHOULD be like 10+ mins long.

After party - has been talked about.

We were told one of our team members would get a ride to Syracuse sunday morning, but we couldn't get a hold of anyone to get him to the airport so we drove him ourselves. Had we known earlier that this was going to be the case, we would have arranged for it, but it was just real last minute.

All in all, minor speed bumps in a very well run, pretty much stress free weekend.

Thanks and hope you guys can improve from this feedback!

I just want to add that Daman, you were really patient with our whole disc/mix issue and that we really appreciate you guys working with us. Sound system was great(props Russell). Also, for future references and the sake of everyone's sanity...try to keep all the teams on the same floor if possible or advise the hotel to keep any incidents at a minimum.

Lastly, after seeing the hotel ballroom, wouldn't mind seeing the after party there for teams in the future. It was huge!

 

[siddyp]

i apologize for not including this in my initial post but I need to give a very BIG shout out to Daman. You did an amazing job from START to FINISH. I'm talking, December to now. Too easy to work with/get a hold of and willing to make sure everything is good and ready to go no matter what.

Whoever is running Fever next needs to learn from you. sick job

 

[DamanSingh]

haha thanks so much guys. After a year of inactivity, the positive feedback means the world to us.


We will definitely take into account everything that has been said on this thread when we discuss Bhangra Fever at our next few e-board meetings. Coming back after a year, with a new committee, there were definitely some areas where we could have improved. the mixer, for one, definitely dragged on forever haha. We did not anticipate the games taking as long as they did. This is definitely something we will fix for next year, along with the other things that were mentioned. We explored all sorts of ideas, and maybe we didn't implement the best ones, but one thing is for certain: we appreciate all the constructive feedback and will definitely take it into account for next year.


not only Russell, but also a huge to thanks to our DJ, Raj Minocha, for offering his speakers for the show. The speakers in the theater aren't meant for loud bhangra music, so Raj has always been so generous and helpful, allowing us to use some of his speakers for Bhangra Fever every year. A huge thank you to Raj Minocha for everything.

 

[Ajay.H]

Daman and the crew put on a great show. Huge shout out to our liaisons, Kiran and Sagar. Kiran ripped that performance at the end (Binghamton Bhangra performed exhibition) and our entire team went buck for it. These guys were great all weekend and were just so damn nice and straightforwardly helpful. Also, Harjot is a fantastic and very positive man to have around - Any competition is lucky to have him.

Mixer - 100% agree with Sid about having lineup selected purely by random chance and nothing else. I understand that it might be harder to get teams to care and get into the mixer games without incentive, but I think a good alternative is after party tickets or something - Then you can actually mix teams up too.

Tech time - Even with a later tech time, everything was dead on time, with extra practice space after the tech time for an entire hour. Very much appreciated!

Show - Easy to get from backstage to the audience which was definitely nice. Not too far from the hotel. No real complaints here.

We were lucky enough to have some additional team members there to run around and grab food, etc, but any food you can give us is always a huge plus.

Anyways, congratulations on a solid weekend!

 

[DamanSingh]

Several people have raised concern about the timing of judges meetings at the end of the show. We limited them to 5 minutes because the venue closes at 11:00 PM and we could not have anyone in the judges lounge past that time. The show ended at around 9:35, and the meetings started at around 9:45 and ended close to 11:00. Also, the last shuttle back to the official hotel departed shortly after 11, and we had to ensure that anyone left in the theater hopped onto that shuttle.


This is definitely something we'll change for next year - we will allow more time for the deliberations, and possibly change the location to a lounge in the official hotel, which, unlike the theater, will be available long after the show ends.