Elite 8 - Review

[Vick]

I havent posted on here in years but I felt compelled to share my views on what was a great show. I'm not going to dissect every team.

The Show:

I've been going to shows for almost a decade now. This years Elite 8 ranks right up there with some of the best shows(if not the best) that I have been to in the years that I have been involved with bhangra. A lot of members on this forum took cheap shots at Elite 8, stating things like "Elite 8 isn't what it used to be", "Elite 8 doesn't have it anymore", more recently "There are more people on BTF because people tuned out when SGPD and NJ dropped", you couldn't be further from the truth. Elite 8 set the standard once again this year like they did two years ago. The show ran flawlessly and the level of competition was second to none. Most importantly the tension that teams like NJ and SGPD typically bring to competitions was non-existent so committee members could actually focus on putting together a good show vs. trying to quell competing egos(even though there were some moments here and there). By the end of the night, SGPD and NJ were an afterthought. Elite didn't lose out, those two great teams lost a great chance to cement their reputations as the best in North America. I've heard rumors about why both teams didn't come, I won't post them on here, but even if 10% of them are true, NJ and SGPD should be embarrassed by their lack of professionalism.

Elite took some heat on this forum from people complaining about the show being "too gimicky". This is a show designed to bring out the best in teams, to pit the best teams in the country against one another to see where each stands. This is a show where you are challenged to make lasting memories that dont fade with time. This is a show where creativity, skill, passion, and thinking outside the box are pushed to the limits. This is a show where you don't just prance around on stage for 8 mins and take home some stupid trophy but where you are expected to make history and set the standard. Some of the greatest performances in the past couple of years have occurred not in Toronto, not in Vancouver, not in California, not in New York, but in Washington D.C. at Elite 8. This is a show where it's a privelege to perform, not a right. Anyone who attended last nights show will never forget it, I can gaurentee you that. There were tears shed on stage, back stage and everywhere in between. For some it was their last performance, for others it was the biggest stage you will ever dance on. For one couple, it was the beginning of something special and they shared it with 1000 of the their closest friends. Elite 8 was more than a competition last night, it was more a celebration. For the first time in at least half a decade, watching teams pour their hearts out on stage was a pleasure again.

To the EMDO Entertainment staff and all of its volunteers, you guys did one hell of a job and it was a pleasure attending your show.

JJ: Beautiful... Thats all I have to say...

NYPD: Watch out SGPD and NJ, you have some competition...

UNC: I didn't know anything about your bhangra team... I didn't know you won VPD and Burgh... I know now... Well deserved first place...

Raashi and "Violinder": God blessed both you with some amazing talent...

MC's: Killed it... Both of you...

G Deep: I thought he was pretty damn funny and entertaining. He did well.

Now to the not-so-good:

To the AEG Captain(Kush/Ankush): Coming into this show I was well aware of AEG's reputation. But I came into the show with an open mind and to be honest with you, I actually had respect for you personally after I saw you command the stage during rehersals. You stated after the mixer that it was all good if AEG didn't win, you would just "go home and make your own trophy." I thought that was the right attitude. If you didnt win, at least have fun while your here. In the hotel after the after party you ran your mouth in the middle of the lobby at one of judges who was in no position to defend herself and then you turned to another judge who stood 30 ft away and again put him on blast yelling at him directly saying things like "I make AEG, the judges dont make AEG", "F*** the Elite 8 judges". Your tough guy lobby attitude was quickly diminished by one of your groupies that led you to the elevator. As a captain(or leader of the team, I'm not sure what you are) you have a responsibility to lead by example. You could have manned up, walked over and asked why AEG didn't place. There were many reasons. In fact even if there were 3 trophies handed out, AEG would have still gone home with zero. Thats not a judging issue, thats a leadership issue. There is no quicker way to infuriate a judge than to call him out and then walk away without having to hear why you didn't place. All of the judges last night were far more experienced and have been around the scene far longer than you have, the respect you showed was classless. I'm sure a lot of it was just to get a reaction from your boys(and ladies) in the lobby, but thats just stupid. Instead of practicing your post performance lobby hating speech, put more time into practicing and learning how to take criticism like a man.

Hotel fire alarm: Wow! I've seen it all now.

-Vick

**** I'm not going to respond to anything. I spoke the truth. Let the hating commence.

 

[cholasux]

AEG are a bunch of modded

 

[cholasux]

AEG are a bunch of obnoxious individuals? is that one better BTF

 

[G.O.O.D.Music]

why wasnt sgpd and nj there ? lol and nypd should have won pshhhhhhhh

 

[KushK]

Ill start of by apologizing to the bhangra circuit and the Elite 8 Judges. I honestly should not have said what I did. I was intxocated and well it got the best of me... I don't think I have ever done something of that sort. A lot of time was put into the set and all credit to the rest of my boys and girls for executing and maintaining a respect level for judges and the other teams before and after the show. I mean there was a lot of things that went down this weekend but I guess you chose to put AEG on the spot and I guess rightfully so. Once again my actions were completely uncalled for and yes as AEG captain I have a responsibility, so I apologize and promise to never let that ever happen again in the future from my side or the teams.

In the past year or so, AEG has worked really hard to gain a better reputation on the circuit. From donations to the way we act at competitions and the way we carry ourselves. I understand in the past we were seen as a bunch of goons but I am also sure that over the last year or so we have improved our rep tremendously and im sure a lot of people will vouch for that. Vic I wish that I couldve changed your view on AEG completely. Unforutuantley my actions last night took away from our image and I hope that I can as team leader, improve that in the coming future for you and the rest of the circuit.

I really don't want this to take a way from our performance. We are all very proud of what we accomplished last night and we wanted to dedicate this performance to the Virsa family and Manmeet Sandhu.

Elite 8 was really well run. Special thanks to Pooja, Waleed, Love, Simi and everybosy else who made it happen! Much respect for you all and what you all doing for bhangra circuit (will post my own review shortly as well!) Thanks!

 

[Varun00]

a great review, and great reply by ankush. this weekend just keeps getting better and better :')

 

[siddyp]

It is clear from the reviews that each team put all they had into their routines. It is understandable to have emotions running high after the competition when the goal was not achieved after all the time and effort.

Thank you Ankush for manning up, being professional, and coming out and stating that what you did was wrong and vowing to not let it happen again. Great to see +1

 

[RDhariwal]

a great review, and great reply by ankush. this weekend just keeps getting better and better :')

Ditto

 

[Deepi253]

jj and nypd TOTALL MIND FUCK ...


aeg - way too much going on sloppy at many times ... intresting to watch but nothing new from old sets that made me go wowowowow ... sorry?

bk- minor mess ups but very very very fun to watch some dancers were not at the same level but very entertaining to watch

smd - only thing i can say is wow girls wow you made bhangra girls look good

nypd - minor messeups here and there messy at times but omfg.... you guys went off no lie you went off

jj- can we have a award for possible best mix of all time? you guys did some gooood stuff ... main jordi looked very lazy at times same with some other dancers but wow .. just wow ..

unc - yall just too clean ... very creative .. bassically a 2010 vcu but better

apd - sorry but that was way to messy and that outfit change was cool ! paggan could have been alot better but your mix was wayyyyyy to nasty

vcu - surya goood job im soo glad this team is still alive ..and can you say clean?

 

[sangeensingh]

this is a very entertaining thread

 

[Kaur]

Show:

Vick already said everything that needs to be said about it. Well run, on time and great organization. This was my 3rd year at Elite and it gets better every year. Anything that is an issue one year is always fixed by the next. Last year getting into the afterparty was a hassle, this year security came and checked id's on the bus and you were in without waiting in a line.

A lot was said about Elite 8 in terms of teams not being up to par and assumptions about performances not being at 'Elite 8' level. But damn!!! teams brought it and brought it hard. I remember sitting in the audience going ' shit, how are other teams going to top this'.

JJ - you were sick!! I am a fan of bhangra and you guys executed it to perfection and with the perfect amount of creativity. One of the only flawless routine of the night I believe.

Nypd- gimmicks were awesome, 300 scene was wow- good job

Unc- my favorites going into the comp, it was perfection. The gimmicks didnt take away from the performance, everything was done in moderation and clean to the max. It was pure bhangra, they did not creativity take over.

Aeg- entertaining like always and set a new trend 12 man into 18 into 24 plus 3 man jodis!

Smd/BK- you guys were great, both teams proved that they deserved to be on that stage, great routines. The best performances I have seen put on stage by both teams.

Vcu- its so regreshing to see 'bhangra' and only bhangra on stage. Been a fan since day 1 good job with the new squad

Great performances, great show, every one of these teams proved that they are some of the best in North America.

We all know that a routine at Elite 8 is a first place routine at any other comp, so keep them and bring in trophies all year long anywhere else that you guys decide to compete.

I am proud of every single dancer that stepped onto that stage, it's not something that every team gets to do, so just appreciate the opportunity to dance with approx 150 of the best dancers North America had to offer in 2011

 

[smehta313]

probably gonna repeat a lot that's been said before.
here are my 2 cents:


Preshow: I got to the show around 5:45, show was supposed to start 6 or 6:30 and ended up starting around 7,7:15. No worries though, IST was completely understandable for this. Lobby was pretty full , had a superbowl-esque to it where there are so many corporate business executives rather than actual fans, but those were just parents, uncles, aunties, etc. The E8 shirt that was being sold in the lobby for $5 was a great deal. (Thanks EMDO) and then there were many other little small booths providing information, selling jewelry, and charity groups. Every team you saw as well had cheerful looks and simply happy to be there.
Show:
DCMPAA (Exhibition): These kids will be running teams like UVA, VCU, UMD, GMU & Vtech in the next 5 -6 years. Seemed to be young teenagers and there were kids even younger than that, but the potential is clearly there. The academy there is doing a great job in training dancers clearly. Great exhibition act to start off with. If anyone from DCMPAA sees this, please tell the kid in the hot pink/purple vaardiyaan I am his biggest fan. Crazy smile and mad graceful.
JJ: Easily the favorite and had the most support amongst all teams. The Highlighter yellow shirts made it seem that every other person in the auditorium was there for JJ. Routine wise, each segment seemed to start off slowly and picked up as it went on, which I find genius. I think almost every segment had the “Wooooooo” part from saaps to the end. The jhoomer was beyond the most beautiful I have ever seen. Everyone was extremely on point at this part and the nakhre of each of the dancers was so sick. Great segment overall. Things I noticed that chadaars were high on some people and energy level for 14/16 of the dancers was there, but you could see a few taking it easy at times in the back. Not as clean as JJ is expected to be, but then again this was first time JJ went 16 man. I strongly feel that if this team did go last then, it may have been cleaner and more energetic. But that’s life sometimes, so you just got to deal with it. The Flash Mob gimmick definitely had its pros and cons to it, but I was entertained regardless. Arjun Kaushal ripped up the center of that. Overall though, it was folk and extremely entertaining. Loved the vaardiyaan and loved the mix. Hope that we still see more of JJ in the future.
(PS : Someone please post the jhoomer song. I believe it was Piya Re by Nusrat, but not sure)

SMD: Loved the intro of “The first all girls team to grace the stage of Elite 8” and the whole set on top of it was great. Having a whole real segment with formations and actual dancing was the one difference that SMD had from every team, which I thought was great. I enjoyed every single segment of this routine. Quite entertaining, ideas were original for the most part. The “Lean wit it, rock wit it” segment was sick. Loved the gimmick with the glow in the dark people dancing, loved the dhamaal, the jhummer, everything. There were few things here and there with bhetkas being messed, legs, not being high at times on some dancers, but I definitely felt this routine was the best all girls routine I have ever seen and please correct me if I’m wrong on that. SMD set a new level for Girls Bhangra. Achint, Reeda, and the pink johri (sorry don’t know your name :-/) definitely brought some next level dancing and ripped that stage in half. Mix and vaardi of course were sick as well. Please post the mix.

AEG: After seeing the first two teams AEG’s saap movement intro didn’t hype me up as much, but the second they started dancing, my mind was blown. The energy and power behind each one of these dancers, and especially the saap extension is amazing (even though it should be that way for a team of this caliber, AEG definitely takes the cake with this). One of the purple johris I believe who was in the front for a good part of the saap segment didn’t have a saap, so that obviously hurt, but did a good job hiding it. Gimmicks were entertaining, but something about this didn’t remind me of the caliber that AEG has reached with Bruin and Boston. The smiling of many dancers was not there, but the routine definitely made up for it. Noticed a few chaadars were low too, but energy wasn’t an issue so that’s great. Of course the ending was awesome. The problem with it was that with 40% of that being BTF, everyone I think saw it coming, which just sucks because BTF has kept us updated with videos, but if no one had seen the Boston video and then they did this routine again I think the crowd would erupted. Not AEG’s fault, just one of those things you can’t really control. Ending was sick though, by far. Not sure, why a panda exactly, but liked it anyways. All 24 of you looked in perfect sync and im sure ill watch it a few more times on youtube.

BK: This was my first time ever seeing BK live, so was pretty excited. Saw them in their white kurta and was a little sad to be honest, but the kurta switch was sick. Kept trying to look for which one was Harman because I’ve heard he was an amazing dancer, but most of these guys were pretty good regardless. I feel the attempt for grace was much higher than the effort to keep energy high in this segment, maybe it was just me, but it wasn’t that large of a difference maker. The west coast hip-hop that klasikhz incorporated is hot as hell, loved the mix. The red johri was killing the daang segment, but one of their khunde dropped and he ran to go pick it up, really hurt parts of the performance IMO. Violinder was great as always, crowd fell in love when he came out and cried when he left. That piece never gets old. Suggestion though, maybe you could incorporate him dancing somehow, not exactly sure because I know playing the violin’s difficult, but im sure y’all can figure out something creative more or less. Bollywood segment was pretty funny as well. Ending segment similar to I think bruin or jashan, don’t necessarily remember, was incorporated better, btu this by no means was bad. The part that hurt though was that one dancer was missing his and I remember quite clearly how tired he looked. Definitely could’ve changed the overall judging if he had it on because it just took too much away. Regardless, was great watching y’all live for the first time and I hope its not the last.

VCU: This one will be relatively shorter since everyone has seen their vpd segment. Quite similar, the intro and ending were both great ways to get the crowd into it and I liked the basketball intro in the beginning with one of the yellow johri dribbling the ball around. Set was clean and simple just like VCU is, but it was gonna be hard to incorporate too much from DDA to VPD to Elite which is unfair to them, but that’s life sometimes. Thought they did well given their situation, their dancers are definitely there and hope they keep they’re vcu style alive regardless. Great job guys! (Nitin, you my friend are an amazing dancer and a great person).

APD: This routine was definitely not what I had in mind. The flip to start off was sick (so happy that worked out well because would’ve been really unfortunate if it didn’t). Routine kept me awake even though the small lack of uniformity throughout the routine. Energy was sometimes an issue and I liked the kurta switch, but way too many pauses. Essentially, giving you guys enough rest throughout where energy should have been exceptional. But in the end, who cares? The proposal was beautiful. The set was fun to watch with your variations of most moves and gimmicks throughout, but the marriage proposal had me out of my seat. Congrats to APD. Too much respect for a team that went all the way to DC to support their brother.

NYPD: Too many mixed opinions, but I enjoyed this segment from beginning to end. The main problems were paags on the floor, the saap being kicked off the stage, some khunde being thrown improperly, etc problems here and there. However, the dancers of NYPD were easily the most uniform. Each one of these guys looked like the person next to them, matched the energy of the person next to them, and nakhre was on point with the person next to them. You can’t help but feel bad for these guys because they deserve first and according to such things at elite, they very well were first. Ending segment, I personally enjoyed, but I see how a bhangra judge may not find it the most appropriate or even entertaining. However, if they bring this set anywhere from now on at a competition besides Elite and they don’t get first, all hell will probably break loose. Huge fan, really thought at one point it was theres, because after the first six teams, NYPD clearly had won.

UNC: Feel like it was a Cinderella story and 2010 all over again. UNC came in, not number one in the eyes of many, but you could tell they wanted it. Awkward confusion in the beginning, but these guys became more entertaining to watch as the show went on. Drumline idea was great, new concept in bhagnra that I don’t believe has ever been seen. So happy for these guys, especially Raj, Rashi & Alan, y’all can watch the video because I just don’t have words to explain their success. Congrats guys!!

After Party: Thought it went pretty well, not too crowded, but not empty. No fights that I saw and people were generally happy. Good guy to girl ratio and the employees were pretty chill in terms of letting people in. lines weren’t too long and it, of ocurse, went a little over 3, but it was still great. The bathroom was really nice, especially for clubs, so happy about that. Good choice emdo.

Hotel (After the After-party): Can’t help but feel bad for the people there. Mad complaints throughout, of course and to make things worse, fire alarm went off at 4 am and twice more . We chilled outside the lobby for a bit, and then the usual crew of cops and firefighters come. Emdo started kicking teams out around 7 am which is particularly rough for the drivers that had their fun at the after-party, but overall people still seemed joyous and chill for the most part.

Great weekend in general, hope to hear mixes soon. Congrats to all the teams that were invited and congrats to UNC for winning. Honestly feel any of these teams really could have won first after their routines, but the show order definitely played a huge role in deciding the atmosphere. Thank you Emdo and DC for taking bhangra to another level.

 

[SunnyS]

I havent posted on here in years but I felt compelled to share my views on what was a great show. I'm not going to dissect every team.

The Show:

I've been going to shows for almost a decade now. This years Elite 8 ranks right up there with some of the best shows(if not the best) that I have been to in the years that I have been involved with bhangra. A lot of members on this forum took cheap shots at Elite 8, stating things like "Elite 8 isn't what it used to be", "Elite 8 doesn't have it anymore", more recently "There are more people on BTF because people tuned out when SGPD and NJ dropped", you couldn't be further from the truth. Elite 8 set the standard once again this year like they did two years ago. The show ran flawlessly and the level of competition was second to none. Most importantly the tension that teams like NJ and SGPD typically bring to competitions was non-existent so committee members could actually focus on putting together a good show vs. trying to quell competing egos(even though there were some moments here and there). By the end of the night, SGPD and NJ were an afterthought. Elite didn't lose out, those two great teams lost a great chance to cement their reputations as the best in North America. I've heard rumors about why both teams didn't come, I won't post them on here, but even if 10% of them are true, NJ and SGPD should be embarrassed by their lack of professionalism.

Elite took some heat on this forum from people complaining about the show being "too gimicky". This is a show designed to bring out the best in teams, to pit the best teams in the country against one another to see where each stands. This is a show where you are challenged to make lasting memories that dont fade with time. This is a show where creativity, skill, passion, and thinking outside the box are pushed to the limits. This is a show where you don't just prance around on stage for 8 mins and take home some stupid trophy but where you are expected to make history and set the standard. Some of the greatest performances in the past couple of years have occurred not in Toronto, not in Vancouver, not in California, not in New York, but in Washington D.C. at Elite 8. This is a show where it's a privelege to perform, not a right. Anyone who attended last nights show will never forget it, I can gaurentee you that. There were tears shed on stage, back stage and everywhere in between. For some it was their last performance, for others it was the biggest stage you will ever dance on. For one couple, it was the beginning of something special and they shared it with 1000 of the their closest friends. Elite 8 was more than a competition last night, it was more a celebration. For the first time in at least half a decade, watching teams pour their hearts out on stage was a pleasure again.

To the EMDO Entertainment staff and all of its volunteers, you guys did one hell of a job and it was a pleasure attending your show.

JJ: Beautiful... Thats all I have to say...

NYPD: Watch out SGPD and NJ, you have some competition...

UNC: I didn't know anything about your bhangra team... I didn't know you won VPD and Burgh... I know now... Well deserved first place...

Raashi and "Violinder": God blessed both you with some amazing talent...

MC's: Killed it... Both of you...

G Deep: I thought he was pretty damn funny and entertaining. He did well.

Now to the not-so-good:

To the AEG Captain(Kush/Ankush): Coming into this show I was well aware of AEG's reputation. But I came into the show with an open mind and to be honest with you, I actually had respect for you personally after I saw you command the stage during rehersals. You stated after the mixer that it was all good if AEG didn't win, you would just "go home and make your own trophy." I thought that was the right attitude. If you didnt win, at least have fun while your here. In the hotel after the after party you ran your mouth in the middle of the lobby at one of judges who was in no position to defend herself and then you turned to another judge who stood 30 ft away and again put him on blast yelling at him directly saying things like "I make AEG, the judges dont make AEG", "F*** the Elite 8 judges". Your tough guy lobby attitude was quickly diminished by one of your groupies that led you to the elevator. As a captain(or leader of the team, I'm not sure what you are) you have a responsibility to lead by example. You could have manned up, walked over and asked why AEG didn't place. There were many reasons. In fact even if there were 3 trophies handed out, AEG would have still gone home with zero. Thats not a judging issue, thats a leadership issue. There is no quicker way to infuriate a judge than to call him out and then walk away without having to hear why you didn't place. All of the judges last night were far more experienced and have been around the scene far longer than you have, the respect you showed was classless. I'm sure a lot of it was just to get a reaction from your boys(and ladies) in the lobby, but thats just stupid. Instead of practicing your post performance lobby hating speech, put more time into practicing and learning how to take criticism like a man.

Hotel fire alarm: Wow! I've seen it all now.

-Vick

**** I'm not going to respond to anything. I spoke the truth. Let the hating commence.

Since you said you won't reply back i guess this is pointless but heck, why not. Whatever rumors you heard about SGPD dropping out are more than likely false because if you knew why we dropped out, you wouldn't say we need to be embarrassed. I'm not embarrassed at all lol maybe a bit sad on missing out on a good comp but nothing more than that. Anyways, just finished watching the videos and i'd have to give first to JJ or NYPD. Not to take anything away from UNC, their performance was really good but JJ and NYPD was more entertaining to me but i guess judges liked what they saw from UNC. Congrats on 1st, keep it up

 

[rajkaran]

After Party: Thought it went pretty well, not too crowded, but not empty. No fights that I saw and people were generally happy. Good guy to girl ratio and the employees were pretty chill in terms of letting people in. lines weren’t too long and it, of ocurse, went a little over 3, but it was still great. The bathroom was really nice, especially for clubs, so happy about that. Good choice emdo.

Not to take away from the great review, Sahil, but I think we had very different after party experiences! The amount of "creeps" exceeded its limit. I had to deal with warding off a random guy who was grabbing numerous girls inappropriately (luckily he got bounced ASAP). I also wish the venue was slightly larger considering that bhangra dancing takes up a lot of space (and because practically NO ONE SAYS SORRY ANYMORE when they step on your foot haha). Sorry...just two pet-peeves I had to get off my chest haha

 

[Ajay.H]

(PS : Someone please post the jhoomer song. I believe it was Piya Re by Nusrat, but not sure)

here you go! jhummar was SO nice, but next to sheel, even though there were obviously great dancers on that stage, just seemed like few people could match that/nail that slow of a song.

 

[campy614]

I am proud of every single dancer that stepped onto that stage, it's not something that every team gets to do, so just appreciate the opportunity to dance with approx 150 of the best dancers North America had to offer in 2011

Ladies and gentlemen, this is what the Elite 8 experience-as a dancer-is all about. MORE THAN ANYTHING it is a showcase of the best bhangra teams that North America has to offer.

Few random things that I remember from the night:
-All of the exhibition teams were great. Loved watching them.
-Rashi and Violinder-AAAMAZINGGGGG. I had chills up and down my spine. Absolutely phenomenal.
-Each team brought their A game. Good job to everyone.
-I enjoyed JJ's performance. Mix was amazing. Synchronized as always. Little random things I didn't like, but I don't remember them off the top of my head. Also I remember one or two dancers not bouncing their shoulders. Baruaface-I, as well as the rest of the bhangra community, will miss you competing on stage. You left with a bang. Love you bro.
-SMD, This. Was. Amazing. Probably one of my favorite performances from you ladies. Sangeeta and Harleen's chunnis falling was unfortunate, but killer performance nonetheless. Aditi was amazing.
-AEG, what do I have to say. Love you boys. There were parts that I loved, and parts that need fixing-I'll go into that later if you want a detailed review. NAVIII!!! <3
-BK, SERIOUSLY one of your best performances. From my view, it was extremely clean and fun to watch. Keep up the good work. Also, Harman-I missed you bro. Next time your bundh is mine ;-)
-NYPD...um. WOW!!!! Loved it. I will say one thing-I wish your gimmicks would flow more. Also, the 300 thing was AWESOME. However there was a lot of dang swinging, and this was the messiest part of the routine.
-APD-I liked this performance a lot more than recent ones. Keep it up! Also, the proposal was beautiful (and not to mention so was the rock!!). Best wishes to the future bride and groom!
-VCU-obnoxiously clean, as always. However, with all of the other teams-I thought it was forgettable. The basketball thing seemed random. Also, I thought 2 things in regards to the dancers; a) the guys, except for the lead ones, seemed to lack slighly, and b) all of the girls need to open their saaps more... a lot more actually-other than this the girls were amazing. Lead yellow jori was one of the best female dancers of the evening.
-UNC-drumline was a great great idea. I thought it was incredibly synchronized, but I also thought that the way you guys move is a lot easier to synchronize-in general-than the way other teams move. For better or worse, it seemed a little too reserved.

Something I thought that was funny. Elite 8 2010 had 2 white guys and an asian guy. Elite 8 2010 had no diversity whatsoever. Elite 8 2012 had the exact opposite of 2010-2 asian guys and a white guy. I don't know why I found that funny. On the real, being the "non-desi" at this caliber of a competition is stressful, but you guys were fantastic. My words of advice: keep up the good work; don't become cocky (it will be hard when you have so many people around you boosting your ego, but don't do it); never become complacent.

I feel for the judges who had to make this difficult decision. Anyone could have walked home with that trophy. Congrats to everyone for putting on an amazing show.

PS If anyone wants a more detailed review, I'd be more than happy to give one.

 

[Bharathi]

Ankush props to you for coming onto a public forum and apologizing and taking responsibility for your actions (whatever they were or weren't). There seems to be a lack of that mentality in the circuit these days, good on you!!!!!!!

I heard all the teams ripped it I can't wait to go on a bhangra video marathon one of these days and enjoy them all!

Congrats Sid

 

[HarmanSingh]

UNC was great, well deserved 1st place. I would give JJ 2nd and 3rd to BK. Too many teams made gimmicks the focal point of the routine rather than having the gimmicks compliment the routine. UNC, JJ and BK were the most successful in integrating entertaining gimmicks into an otherwise well executed and clean performance.

 

[dheerja]

Vick pretty much covered how the show itself was, but wanted to put my two cents in as well. Elite this year was by far the best bhangra show I've ever seen in the 10 years I've been attending bhangra competitions. I was blown away by every performance I saw, and the videos of the two performances I didn't get to watch (JJ and VCU) continued to blow me away. It was an honor to be able to perform on that stage shared by a truly "Elite" lineup of teams, and I can't thank the Emdo committee enough for giving us the opportunity to do so. It was a historical night and one that I'll never forget.

Big congrats to UNC for their well-deserved first place, I freaked out when I saw the drum line backstage in the dressing rooms and it was amazing to watch. I also want to commend you guys on your humble attitude, even after winning THREE first places in a row, it's something every team can and should learn from.

And of course congrats to every team that performed Saturday night - I know I speak for my team when I say it was an inspiration to see that caliber of dancing and passion on stage.


HUGE HUGE thanks to...

Emdo (Pooja, Waleed, Simi, Lovepreet, and our kickass liason Nisha) for continuing to raise the bar. I don't even need to elaborate at this point because everyone knows how incredible you guys are at organizing and catering to every single team need.
GSingh - one of the most amazing mixers on the circuit. He did a wonderful job with our mix and was a pleasure to work with, he truly understands how to make a mix that works on stage for an audience. Hit him up for your mix - you won't be disappointed
Sumeet Chani - for smiling at us on stage while killing it on dhol
Drexel and GMU Bhangra - thanks SO much for lending us katos, it was a huge help!
Lavesh - lending us an awesomely hardcore kato bag
Ladoo from AEG - taking the time to tie all 16 of our chaadres, and thanks to AEG for lending him to us!

 

[SunnyS]

Ankush props to you for coming onto a public forum and apologizing and taking responsibility for your actions (whatever they were or weren't). There seems to be a lack of that mentality in the circuit these days, good on you!!!!!!!

I heard all the teams ripped it I can't wait to go on a bhangra video marathon one of these days and enjoy them all!

Congrats Sid

yes i'm also impressed by his sincere apology - many people don't know much about that