My finals are coming up and also, I will be preparing for my out-of-state trip with friends so my blogging will be slow for few weeks.

America is full of different people with different backgrounds and different cultural roots. America is evolving and so is the young people in the country. In the clubs, schools, and in other places a certain type of energetic dance is getting the interest of the American youth. This dance is called bhangra; originated in the northern Indian territory of Punjab, this type of dance has become one of the favorite types performed in parties.

What is bhangra?
WikiPedia’s definition:

Bhangra is a lively dance originating from the region of Punjab, now divided between North India and Pakistan. Bhangra has developed from a variety of popular music while rooted from the regions traditions and has a strong youth following around the world.

Bhangra is a fusion of music, singing and the beat of the dhol drum, a single stringed instrument called the iktar (ektara), the tumbi and an instrument reminiscent of an enlarged pair of tongs called chimta. The accompanying songs are small couplets written in the Punjabi language called bolis. They relate to harvest celebration, love, patriotism or current social issues.

The bhangra music in present day is mixed with pop, rap, and hip/hop music. Several of the great music artists that intergrate bhangra music in their songs are Rishi Rich, Juggy D and Jay Sean from United Kingdom (picture above).

The youth in America is getting to know more and more what bhangra is as the dance is being exposed in public performances. I love modern bhangra and if a group of friends invite me to dance bhangra with them I go and dance with them because it’s a lot of fun. The following is a Google video of a live performance of bhangra in NYU. The dance is bhangra mixed with modern urban style.

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