Adrenaline pumping, heartbeat elevating, foot stomping, brain popping…just a few words this reviewer can come up with while recapping the Boston Bhangra Competition that rocked Boston on November 13.

The venue was packed to the gills with youngsters as a few enthusiastic oldies mingled in. Minutes before the show began, a palpable sense of anticipation hung in the air with occasional cries of ‘ Chak de phatte’ from the audience.

The Emcee for the evening young Ankit Patel was greeted with loud cheers and the first student team to take the stage was Kiddan Inc from Phoenix, Arizona. A short audiovisual presentation preceded every item, introducing the competing team to the audience.

As the decibel levels rose, so did the adrenaline rush in the dancers and the viewers! From 3 year olds to 80 year olds almost everyone present caught up in the infectious rhythms that infuse the lusty Punjabi songs.

There were teams all the way from California (Sher Foundation from Los Angeles), Canada (SFU Elite from Vancouver), New Jersey (RU Bhangra from New Brunswick), Pennsylvania (Nova Dhadkan from Philadelphia) and New York (NYU Bhangra from New York City) and of course some of the best local Bhangra talents from Boston University, Tufts University, Harvard University and Northeastern University.

The boisterous Bhangra is infectious in its tremendous bursts of energy and the command by the emcee for folks to stay put and refrain from breaking into dance was getting increasingly hard to obey!

The teams put their hearts and souls into each performance, burning up the floor with high-energy moves.

In addition to the different dances, the Bhangra performances also contained many energetic stunts, like the ever popular ‘moor, or peacock, in which a dancer sits on another’s shoulders, while others hang from his torso by his legs. Two-person towers, pyramids, and various spinning stunts were also popular.

The local teams with greeted with cheers and loud shouts of encouragement.

The charmingly self-deprecating emcee Mr. Patel did a commendable job keeping the audience informed and entertained. Every team that competed deserved to win but it came as no big surprise when the winners were declared!

RU Bhangra came in first place, the team from NYU bagged second prize and local heroes BU Bhangra came in third.

Bostonbhangra, a non-profit organization deserves kudos for putting together its first Bhangra Competition with such élan. The event was a resounding success (pun intended).

A popular male folk dance that originally celebrated wheat harvests in the villages of the Indian province of Punjab, Bhangra is both a dance and a type of music. A drum, called a dhol, produces the heavy beats. Characterized by repetitive spinning, bouncing and shoulder shrugging, Bhangra somewhat resembles hip-hop.

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