How do you get famous in the Bhangra world?

[kinnell]

why would they bother to wear khandas?

I don't think there's anything wrong with them wearing khandas. If, as a group, it unites them and is something else they love, then they should be free to show it off. It's just like bhangra teams affiliated with their universities. My school's mascot was the spartans and that adorned our apparel (and our name). There is no correlation between the khanda and bhangra, just like there's no correlation between my school's mascot and bhangra. If, as a bhangra team, they feel the need to express their pride in their religion, let them do it.

 

[Piarpreet Kaur]

why would they bother to wear khandas?

I don't think there's anything wrong with them wearing khandas. If, as a group, it unites them and is something else they love, then they should be free to show it off. It's just like bhangra teams affiliated with their universities. My school's mascot was the spartans and that adorned our apparel (and our name). There is no correlation between the khanda and bhangra, just like there's no correlation between my school's mascot and bhangra. If, as a bhangra team, they feel the need to express their pride in their religion, let them do it.

well, i believe that the real "pride" for that particular religion is preserving kesh... a khanda means nothing to me if you dont follow Guru, and i dont like it when bhangra is linked to Sikhi, specially in these conditions. Thats the reason i dislike it. I am not saying the people who cut their hair are bad people or they dont believe in God, but was very clear when Guru Gobind Singh said it. A khanda is not a substitute, specially when you dont even know that is represents.

I am not a fundamentalist, but if u wanna be a buddist monk, u better not have a heavy metal look to your hair and beard, they cut it to represent something...just like being a khalsa. Its not just identity, the hair has a lot of meaning behind it. And people ignoring its importance makes me sad. Same with 25 year old dudes wearing a cap or a patka...oh lawd! it doesnt just look bad...its pretty embarrassing.

if you are a sikh, wear your hair, if you are a man, wear your pugh.

This is my opinion.

 

[kinnell]

why would they bother to wear khandas?

I don't think there's anything wrong with them wearing khandas. If, as a group, it unites them and is something else they love, then they should be free to show it off. It's just like bhangra teams affiliated with their universities. My school's mascot was the spartans and that adorned our apparel (and our name). There is no correlation between the khanda and bhangra, just like there's no correlation between my school's mascot and bhangra. If, as a bhangra team, they feel the need to express their pride in their religion, let them do it.

well, i believe that the real "pride" for that particular religion is preserving kesh... a khanda means nothing to me if you dont follow Guru, and i dont like it when bhangra is linked to Sikhi, specially in these conditions. Thats the reason i dislike it. I am not saying the people who cut their hair are bad people or they dont believe in God, but was very clear when Guru Gobind Singh said it. A khanda is not a substitute, specially when you dont even know that is represents.

I am not a fundamentalist, but if u wanna be a buddist monk, u better not have a heavy metal look to your hair and beard, they cut it to represent something...just like being a khalsa. Its not just identity, the hair has a lot of meaning behind it. And people ignoring its importance makes me sad. Same with 25 year old dudes wearing a cap or a patka...oh lawd! it doesnt just look bad...its pretty embarrassing.

if you are a sikh, wear your hair, if you are a man, wear your pugh.

This is my opinion.

I understand your point of view, but here's my point of view:


1. People practice their religions in their own way. Many people question their faith everyday (like myself) to find meaning. Who are we to say that someone else is incorrectly following their own religion. The most I think we can say is "I disagree with your perspective from my interpretation of our religion." Yes, there are defining qualities to each religion that every follower should try to follow before the religion they follow is not identifiable with the original - but in the end, I feel the desire to be spiritually content should overshadow any desire to be associated with a group of people (ie: a religion).


2. To you, the khanda means nothing if you don't keep kesh. However, there are many sikhs are cut their hair but are still very spiritual and devout. The khanda to them is a symbol of their faith and some may choose to show it to the world. Who are you to tell them that they are not deserving of wearing the symbol of their faith?


3. I agree that bhangra and sikhi has no connection. I think the association of the khanda to bhangra is the same association between a university mascot to bhangra. It may be hard for some to think of it that way since many bhangra songs talk about the khanda and sikhi, but to me, there is no place for religion in bhangra. If a team came out with Hindu Oms on their vests or even a Christian cross, I do not think any harm is done. It is a way for the team to showcase what could be a unifying element in their team.


I understand where you are coming from, but I respectfully believe that your perspective is a tad bit narrow minded. No harm done, but I look forward to discuss this further.

 

[J Hayer]

well, the reason i was wondering why they were wearing Khanda Shirts is because of the message it gives---

there already is confusion in the minds of some people regarding sikhi and bhangra and wearing shirts just confuses and sends the
wrong message to folks not as immersed in bhangra culture. wearing a religious symbol oh so openly def gives the wrong message. especially in a place where most folks viewing are not aware at ALL (such as a diverse student body in a public school cafeteria...)
i mean, i understand what you're saying about Pride and what not - APD's Khanda/Spade symbol is incredibly sexy and mad gangster,
but i think in such situations you dont want spectators leaving and going to a guy wearing a khanda necklace asking if they can do the bhangra lol

in my opinion.

 

[raj42]

2. To you, the khanda means nothing if you don't keep kesh. However, there are many sikhs are cut their hair but are still very spiritual and devout. The khanda to them is a symbol of their faith and some may choose to show it to the world. Who are you to tell them that they are not deserving of wearing the symbol of their faith?


I understand where you are coming from, but I respectfully believe that your perspective is a tad bit narrow minded. No harm done, but I look forward to discuss this further.

totally agree

 

[Piarpreet Kaur]

well, the reason i was wondering why they were wearing Khanda Shirts is because of the message it gives---

there already is confusion in the minds of some people regarding sikhi and bhangra and wearing shirts just confuses and sends the
wrong message to folks not as immersed in bhangra culture. wearing a religious symbol oh so openly def gives the wrong message. especially in a place where most folks viewing are not aware at ALL (such as a diverse student body in a public school cafeteria...)
i mean, i understand what you're saying about Pride and what not - APD's Khanda/Spade symbol is incredibly sexy and mad gangster,
but i think in such situations you dont want spectators leaving and going to a guy wearing a khanda necklace asking if they can do the bhangra lol

in my opinion.

totally agree

 

[Piarpreet Kaur]

kinnell i know where u coming from...and i appreciate that u at least hear my point.

I am a little bit of a fundamentalist when it comes to kesh. a khanda can NEVER substitude the pride of kesh because it was never mentioned as Kakar (panj kakaar) by Guru. But again, i respect your view.

I still believe that Sikhi is being underestimated because people forget about the importance of kesh not just as identity. There is a huge meaning behind it. All SGGS is written around Hukam...

 

[DPDnick]

Try to get your team to perform at a family party first. After that, try to perform at other parties. Then, get some money together and perform at a competition as a exhibition. If you guys do well, then the organizers of the same competition will invite your team.

 

[nirajthaker]

We just went through this this year.This is what we did:
-We decided to use our 1st semester just doing gigs and a local show we have here in FL. So that we could grow as a team and gain some stage experience. And as for Punjabi's you don't need to have a team full of Punjabi's to do bhangra, our team has only a few.
-We made a clean tryout video to send to comps.
-We spent the 2nd semester competing.


Here are some tips

• Identify what kind of team you're going to be. Modern/folk, guys/girls/co-ed etc..
• Know what comps you are applying to. Some comps are meant for modern teams and some for folk.
• Be realistic. Don't apply to all huge comps, do some smaller comps to get your name out and have a better chance of getting in and fitting in.
• Nice outfits. This may sound irrelevant, but it actually does help your name get out there if you look nice.
• Bring something new to the table. The last thing the bhangra world needs is another copying team, be original when introducing your team to the scene, as far as choreo, music, vardiyaan, etc..

These are only a few tips that come to mind... Feel free to contact me if you want some more advice.

 

[Piarpreet Kaur]

F*Beep*K vardiyaan! Dance bhangra naked...that'll make u famous...a lot faster.

 

[dj2nyce]

F*Beep*K vardiyaan! Dance bhangra naked...that'll make u famous...a lot faster.

oh...

 

[Jabar Jung]

2 ways..

1) Be a suck up to people on btf.
OR
2) Be like Vick..

haha where are you vickinder!

 

[hsdeol]

observe successful teams, take the good and try to achieve the same feel with your respective element. most importantly work hard and be patient. so far this has been our (FCB) strategy

 

[itsG]

might be hard for you to start in denver since i doubt theres a need for bhangra at parties, i would suggest trying out some competitions if your team can afford that

actually, parties might be their best bet if they're the only team in denver. if you guys perform at culture shows, talent shows, etc. and get your name out there you can charge for performing at parties and from there use the money to compete and from there your name will run through the threads on btf... hahaha

see everyone says do parties and fundraisers but being from highly populated desi areas u dont realise - There are no parties where people want a bhangra crew because its not custom; just like if noone had DJ's at a party being a DJ somewhere wouldnt help. So being the only bhangra team or there being 4 different teams doesnt really matter cuz the demand for having them for parties just isnt there.


and i mean this guys complaining about there not being anything within 350 miles. Try starting one in Texas most competitions not huge ones but just a mid-sized ones 1200 miles. and since competitions are far people usually dont wanna go to em cuz the cost of just doing the whole thing is nowhere near break-even.