Post by TARA DOOLEY Houston Chronicl on Sept 27, 2004 0:16:26 GMT
Indian tradition turns hip-hop
Bill Olive: For the Chronicle
Navdeep Singh, left, and Palwinder Singh Chamdal and Gurjinder Singh Bahia are part of the Bhangra Dance team.
www.chron.com/cs/CDA/ssistory.mpl/ae/music/jump/2797390
It was not exactly the fields after a long day of harvesting crops, a traditional setting for north Indian bhangra dancing. Or even the bright lights of Broadway.
It was a construction shed, complete with tractor. But on the north Houston spot that one day will be home to a Sikh temple, seven 16- to 24-year-olds gathered Sunday evening to hoof it.
As 17-year-old Gurkaran Singh beat the bhangra rhythms on the dhol, an Indian cylinder drum, the six practiced the routine they will perform Saturday as part of a concert at Cullen Performance Hall at the University of Houston.
"It takes a lot of energy and power," Palwinder Singh Chamdal, a senior at Cypress Springs High School, says of the group's bhangra dance routine. "You have to show people you love things; you have to make it easy and good."
Bhangra dance is a folk tradition of northern India that was commonly performed at the end of a long day of farming, says Mohinder Singh, a dance professional based in Baytown who coaches the group.
The Houston team is made up of Punjabi-born dancers, most of whom met in Houston at community parties. They have practiced weekends for about eight months, members say. But their skills will be put to the test against longer-standing teams from Canada, California, Arizona, Florida and Texas.
The winning team takes home $5,000.
"I'm not nervous," says Navdeep Singh Nijjar, a junior at Jersey Village High School. "I'm not even thinking about it that much. All I'm thinking about is that it's fun."
These days, bhangra dancing is often mixed with hip-hop moves. But the Houston team plans to stick to tradition, Chamdal says.
"Some people like whatever is going on right now," he says. "But we are doing the same old school. It is like watching the original."
Bill Olive: For the Chronicle
Navdeep Singh, left, and Palwinder Singh Chamdal and Gurjinder Singh Bahia are part of the Bhangra Dance team.
www.chron.com/cs/CDA/ssistory.mpl/ae/music/jump/2797390
It was not exactly the fields after a long day of harvesting crops, a traditional setting for north Indian bhangra dancing. Or even the bright lights of Broadway.
It was a construction shed, complete with tractor. But on the north Houston spot that one day will be home to a Sikh temple, seven 16- to 24-year-olds gathered Sunday evening to hoof it.
As 17-year-old Gurkaran Singh beat the bhangra rhythms on the dhol, an Indian cylinder drum, the six practiced the routine they will perform Saturday as part of a concert at Cullen Performance Hall at the University of Houston.
"It takes a lot of energy and power," Palwinder Singh Chamdal, a senior at Cypress Springs High School, says of the group's bhangra dance routine. "You have to show people you love things; you have to make it easy and good."
Bhangra dance is a folk tradition of northern India that was commonly performed at the end of a long day of farming, says Mohinder Singh, a dance professional based in Baytown who coaches the group.
The Houston team is made up of Punjabi-born dancers, most of whom met in Houston at community parties. They have practiced weekends for about eight months, members say. But their skills will be put to the test against longer-standing teams from Canada, California, Arizona, Florida and Texas.
The winning team takes home $5,000.
"I'm not nervous," says Navdeep Singh Nijjar, a junior at Jersey Village High School. "I'm not even thinking about it that much. All I'm thinking about is that it's fun."
These days, bhangra dancing is often mixed with hip-hop moves. But the Houston team plans to stick to tradition, Chamdal says.
"Some people like whatever is going on right now," he says. "But we are doing the same old school. It is like watching the original."