What is Bhangra?
Bhangra is a centuries-old traditional folk dance and music originating from Punjab, India. It is still performed by farmers in celebration of the harvest season. From its humble roots, Bhangra has since evolved into a competitive dance as well as a high energy exercise form. It provides individuals with a great cardiovascular workout while also improving flexibility and increasing muscle strength.
What should you expect?
In our inaugural class, participants will be introduced to the dance form of Bhangra, basic moves, and health benefits. We will schedule future classes based on participant interest. Come enjoy some catchy beats with a fun new experience!
What should you bring or wear to the class?
Make sure to bring a water bottle with you and any necessary wraps/braces you normally wear when you exercise.
Remember, Bhangra is a high energy dance form requiring lots of movement. We suggest you wear workout attire to the class: yoga pants, leggings, sweats, t-shirts, basketball shorts, etc. Please note that jeans, professional attire, etc. are not ideal for this class.
Instructors
Navi Sandhu, Neha Singh, and Sonia Singh have collectively trained over 90 individuals to competitively perform Bhangra. The three of them are members of East Side Alliance (ESA), an all-female bhangra team bringing together the talent of the East Coast. They competed together this past March at World's Best Bhangra Crew 2014 against ten elite international teams. They won their match-up against the West Coast Alliance (WSA) and placed third overall at the competition.
Navi Sandhu
Navi Sandhu began practicing and performing Bhangra over 10 years ago. Her passion for Bhangra is influenced by her Punjabi heritage as well as her love for being on stage with her fellow dancers. She served as captain for two New York based Bhangra teams including, Shaan Mutiyaaran Di (SMD), an all-female independent dance troupe, and BX Bhangra, a co-ed college dance troupe from Fordham University.
She has also performed with other award winning teams such as Anakh-E-Gabroo, East Side Alliance, and Columbia Bhangra.
Neha Singh
Neha Singh has been competively performing Bhangra for the past eight years. In high school, she led Langley Bhangra to win first place at the High School Bhangra Bash competition in 2007 and 2008. She began her undergraduate career as a member of GW Bhangra and helped to train many of the team's novice dancers. Neha was also one of the founding members of D.C. Bhangra Crew (DCBC), an all-female independent Bhangra dance team. She served as DCBC captain from 2010-2011 and led the team to place at multiple competitions.
Neha has also performed with other award winning team such as East Side Alliance (ESA), Ministry of Bhangra (MOB), Apna Virsa Academy Bhangra (AVA), and Northwestern University Bhangra.
Sonia Singh
Sonia Singh, a native of Chicago, has worked behind the scenes with multiple competitive teams since 2009. During her undergraduate career she and her co-captains led UIUC's I-Bhangra to win three first place awards at national competitions, including Bhangra Blitz in Dallas, Texas. After graduating college and experiencing the absence of competitve bhangra in Chicago, her and two of her friends restarted the Ministry of Bhangra (MOB) in February 2012. As an active captain and dancer on MOB, an independent co-ed team, she has helped train over 20 individuals on technical aspects of bhangra. Just this month her and her team placed third at Notorious Bhangra 3, a national bhangra competition held in California.