Kesariya Rang de, or Colour It Saffron, the colour-filled celebrations to mark Holi, the festival of colours, will be hosted by the Indian Cultural Centre on Monday, 5th March, 2007. This festival of joy is being appropriately celebrated by a performance of the dance epitomizing exuberance and joy, the Bhangra. A 10-member Bhangra troupe from Punjab, India, headed by Ms. Sukhbir Kaur, is visiting Colombo and will give a full display of the verve and vitality of this Punjabi folk dance at the Centre.

Bhangra originated as a harvest dance among Punjabi wheat farmers. The term now refers to several diverse dances including Jhumar, Gidda, Luddi, Daankara and Dhamal. Bhangra lyrics sing of a variety of subjects, from love to arguments with a sister-in-law to political affairs.

Jhumar is a graceful dance, set to a specific Jhumar rhythm. Dancers circle around a drum player while singing a soft chorus. A person performing the Luddi dance places one hand behind his head and the other in front of his face, while swaying his head and arms. He typically wears a plain loose shirt and sways in a snake-like manner. Like a Jhumar dancer, the Luddi dancer moves around a dhol player. Women have a different but equally exuberant dance called Gidda. The dancers enact verses called bolis, representing a wide variety of principally domestic subjects. Julli is a dance associated with Muslim holy men called pirs and is generally performed in their hermitages. Daankara is a dance of celebration, typically performed at weddings. Two men, each holding colourful staves, dance around each other in a circle while tapping their sticks together in rhythm with the drums. Dancers also form a circle while performing Dhamal. They also hold their arms high, shake their shoulders and heads, and yell and scream. Dhamal is a true folk-dance, representing the heart of Bhangra.

In addition to these different dances, a Bhangra performance typically contains many energetic stunts. The most popular stunt is called the mor or peacock, in which a dancer sits on someone’s shoulders, while another person hangs from his torso by his legs. Two-person towers, pyramids, and various spinning stunts are also popular.

The most important instruments that accompany Bhangra are the dhol, a large, bass drum, played by beating with two sticks, and the single-string tumbi, and chimta, a version of the tambourine. Bhangra music and dance today enjoys a worldwide success. Bhangra rap, bhangra pop and bhangra reggae have been produced in the UK, have enjoyed mainstream musical success there and have been re-exported to India. Bhangra epitomizes youth culture in the UK and Canada as much as it does in the Indian subcontinent.

On 5th March, 2007, men wearing the sarong-like lungi and kurta will dance with the women in the traditional salwar-kameez, the long tunic and baggy pants, to the beat of the dhol at the Indian Cultural Centre. Guests at the Centre can smear their friends with the coloured powders, or gulal, of Holi.

The evening will be a pulsating celebration of spring, new life, hope and new beginnings. The performance will commence at 6.00 p.m. at the Indian Cultural Centre, 133, Bauddhaloka Mawatha. The event is open to members of the public. Limited parking will be available at Lanka Hands next door. Enquiries can be made at 2500014.