Now that I'm sitting in class, I'm finally able to write my review of an awesome weekend in Boston.
I'd like to start off by quickly saying thanks for all the shout outs in this thread...it was great meeting you guys.
I was the dholi for the Guardians of Bhangra, and I also would like to say that I personally take the blame for the improperly tied paggan. They were properly tied when we left the hotel, but along the way...some loosened up. I was making adjustments the entire time and couldn't retie the 3 paggan that became victims of the stunts. I also didn't want to bother the other guys around in the hotel because I'm sure they were too busy with their team.
A third of the team came up on thursday night to boston, and we were happily met by our liaison and she showed us around town. She went out of her way and dropped one guy at the metro system there, and gave us a very well thought out guided tour. She showed where to go to get some good food, where to walk around, and showed up varying Boston sites. Along the way, of course I had to pick on her and made some very great jokes.
On friday, it was nice meeting her again and going over the rules for the competition and how things will be run. We went to our practice and then relaxed a bit. The mixer wasn't bad either. It wasn't so much of a mixing at first, but just a scavenger hunt. I liked the idea, but it would have been nice to also mix with other teams too. Along the way, we began meeting more and more people. After the mixer was the pre-party, and that was very fun. the empire dholi came down with his dhol and played the entire night. It was a very chill night, especially since it was mostly just the teams attending. That was where the many dance offs occurred and we got to know people. It was fun throwing down with people from GW, VCU, BMW and a few other guys (ABHIIIIIIIII from Boston and his cousin).
Saturday went by pretty smoothly with the rehearsals. It was just as fun talking with 3D about their Dood-Soda (thanks for the recipe Ajit). After rehearsal we did want some more time to work on stuff, it would have also been nice to have a room available for saturday as well, but oh well.
To the actual show, it all started late. I think it was actually like 6:45 or so when the show really started. The MCs were good enough. They didn't take up too much time, and they just went team to team. They gave a little story about each team, and that's it. That's all an MC needed to be.
We performed 2nd in the show, and everything was pretty smooth. It was kind of annoying when the staff called to tell us that the last bus was going to leave at 5:45 instead of at 6pm. We were doing final touches on ourselves, and I was very rushed to tie my own pagg. The bus didn't actually show until 6pm or so.
Teams:
Bhangra Empire: I really liked the opening of the performance. It was very mysterious with the whole tables and stuff. It was a thrilling event. I don't know if they deserved first in my book, but I thoroughly enjoyed it. It kind of died down a little in the middle and suffered a little at the end. Not too clean for an empire performance, but it was very entertaining and the crowd seemed to have loved them.
BMW: I love BMW's opening part. They were really exciting, and surprised us all. Their khunda segment was really fast paced and they did many different kinds of khunda swings. The BMW guys were also a pleasure to hang out with, and it was awesome throwing down with you guys at the parties. Reed's crazy mohawk thing was great! And Abhi killed it!
BU Bhangra: BU had some good moments, but I didn't really feel it. I didn't like the song choice too much, and it was kind of boring. But it might have been the fact that there were 12 teams performing and an exhibition act as well. It was a lot. They could work on their form and grace.
3D: Where to begin with these guys? They're a great team. They clearly had new guys on the team, and were bringing them up to speed. Ajit is really chill and talked about how next semester will be their big semester. It was clear they were going into Boston looking for a great experience and stories to tell. I'm sure they had that especially after being kicked out of the hotel. Hahahaha...too funny that one of the guys was studying for an exam when it went down.
GW: I really liked you guys, but the energy died down in the middle and the form and grace began to break down a little. It got sloppy at times, but I know you guys are gonna kill it soon. Ricky killed the mela in the beginning, and Neet did a really good job playing dhol for you guys. I've seen the video a few times, and it was a nice set. I especially liked the mela, jhummar part, and the phummian/sharabi chaal thing going on. It was sick. The guys and girls were very equal in the performance, and I liked how they presented themselves.
Jawani: In my view, it's a shame you girls didn't place. I felt you guys did an awesome job. I was thrilled when I saw you girls, and the live part/music parts were great. I felt that some of the moves were a little overdone, but everything else was great.
MIT: I think MIT was the best of the Boston teams. They brought the most out, but some stuff was a little too gimmicky. I enjoyed the performance, and there were some great moments.
NU Bhangra: Fun performance, I especially liked the one little part with Danny and his little girls. Not bad, just needs to get that wow factor there.
RU: I enjoyed their set. It wasn't anything crazy, but the girl singer was awesome! The guy singer needed some time to get into his own voice, but the girl just killed it. Some of the guy dancers showed some really nice nakhra, so it got me very involved.
SHER FOUNDATION: I really liked the start and it's mysteriousness. The intro video was bad ass though. Put that up! The mix of course was hot. Although the beginning was good, it went downhill. The guy in the pink killed it, and i liked how he performed. Some of the guys got tired pretty fast, and it was fairly sloppy. They had a lot of sick stunts, i believe they were the same as bruin, but it was sexy.
The Guardians of Bhangra: It was an absolute pleasure playing dhol for you guys! i'll continue to work on the paggan
VCU: I really liked their performance. The energy level was great. It was consistent and I loved it all. Great job. I expected VCU to have won first. It was great after VCU got 2nd, everyone on stage was yelling "VCU! VCU! VCU!" I know i was screaming it as loud as i could.
Overall i had a great weekend! No real complaints other than the fact that the hotel security was horrendous. They kicked out teams for not really doin' too much, and it wasn't great for a competition. When we just wanted to hang out after the after party, we had nowhere to go. We weren't allowed to sit in the lobby. Our only options was outside (where it was cold) or in the rooms (where we'd be kicked out). There were little to no options on what to do. I remember at Bash in 2007, they gave us a side part of the lobby area, and said we can be as loud as we want. That was really annoying, especially for those of us who wanted to talk to other teams and stuff.
The after party was really fun, up to the point the sound went out. There was plenty of room for us to dance, and no fights really occurred (great for an indian party). It was nice that they set up some food for the teams upstairs, and the whole place was pretty classy. I liked it. More places should consider giant ballrooms for their after parties. Sucks that it had to end at 2am. Oh, and Alaap was really entertaining. He was a fun showman. When his cd wouldn't play, he went backstage and figured it out hahaha. Kinnell and I met him very very late at night, around 6am...really nice.
I'd like to give my own special shout outs to everyone i met. All of 3d (mainly ajit and his famous dood-soda) and all of their "hella" sayings, Nav from Empire on the bus ride to the airport (get me a shirt too), Pooja (one cool cat), Meistro, Saleem, Kinnell (put up those pictures, i want to see me with mr alaap), GW, BMW guys (Reed and Abhi), Abhi (boston one), Abhi's cousin, Kapil, the guardian guys, the empire dholi who i kept seeing EVERYWHERE, and everyone else i met. I sure hung out with a ton of people!
My Placings
1. VCU
2. Jawani
3. Empire
