*My teenage years in Canada remain my most precious.*Our immigrant neighborhood became less segregated and the move to middle class less difficult. I remember one particular friend, she was mixed African and Muslim Indian in origin. Our paths crossed as I adjusted to a new school, new city and life.The new dwellings felt like home. I nestled into the kaleidescope of race and culture once again, my urban security blanket. This distinction brought on my very first notion of travel, the desire to discover other cultures deeply embedded itself into my heart.I became the girl who everyone adopted, fed with delicious meals and pampered like their own. I stitched myself into their families like a dear cousin, always the first to discuss their hopes and dreams, their family recipes, their daughter's and son's disobedient ways. I soaked in the myriad of flavour; the silky materials dazzled me, the spices tantalised and the music enthralled me day after day.My friend, who I will call JV, used to sit for hours with me after school watching music videos and swapping tapes. She had her African influences, Indian references, and then I joined in with my rocky new wave 80's schooling from my siblings. The other popular songs of the time resided easily amongst the mix. We loved "Freddy Mercury":http://www.queenonline.com/fmercury.html. Those few hours after class turned into parties and clubbing, her cultural community inviting me to their events. I licked "biryani":http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Biryani from my fingertips and imitated the Bhangra like moves in turn. All the hottest DJ's of that period always went back to the U.K. I can still see that group of friends, their eyes lighting up as they dreamed of such a definitive trip. Those young eyes, all spanning mixes of Seikh, Punjabi, Hindi, Muslim, Pakistani, Jamaican and me. This cultural identity of being Canadian and something else finally seemed comfortable, and the parties were great!The 80's and 90's were the prime of this transition from old to new, the strong Indian communities in England, Scotland and Canada at the forefront of the boom. One of the DJ's we adored was "Panjabi MC":http://www.pmcrecords.com/index.php?page=414901.*Bhangra has successfully fused* with hiphop, reggae, jungle and more since the beginning. While British Bhangra certainly played a pivotal role in the evolution and popularity of the genre, the origins are actually from the Punjab region of S.E. Asia.*The Origins of Bhangra*"While Bhangra historians speculate the dance may have originated in the time of the wars with Alexander, no one is sure it existed until about five hundred years ago. Around the 14th or 15th Century, Punjabi wheat farmers danced and sang songs about village life to help pass the time while working in the fields. With time, these became part of harvest celebrations at Bhaisakhi (April 13) festivals, as the sight of their crops growing invigorated the farmers. From here the dance quickly moved through all divisions of class and education, eventually becoming a part of weddings, New Year parties, and other important occasions."*What is Bhangra?*"Bhangra is a lively form of music and dance that originated in the Punjab region in Southeast Asia. As many Bhangra lyrics reflect the long and often tumultuous history of the Punjab, knowledge of Punjabi history offers important insights into the meaning of the music. While Bhangra began as a part of harvest festival celebrations, it eventually became a part of such diverse occasions as weddings and New Year celebrations. Moreover, during the last thirty years, Bhangra has enjoyed a surge in popularity worldwide..."*Links*"Bhangra Info via The Desi Flavor":http://jgohil.typepad.com/desiflavor/2004/03/history_of_bhan_1.html"The History of Modern Bhangra":http://www.desiclub.com/desimusic/muzik_newz/muzik_article.cfm?id=27"Panjabi MC Official Site":http://www.pmcrecords.com/index.php?page=414901*Like most high school friends,* the group we were slowly vanished with time. News of us each were encouraging though, and we all seemed to remember the same things, the same fun. I left home the earliest at 18, the world awaited but loyalty prevails. When passing through London, or Paris, or wherever, I still wonder if I will run into one of them. Well, at least we share this, no matter if or when.
Jonh Ingham says
What a wonderful reminiscence; sounds like a good community to live in. You reminded me of hearing Punjabi MC on the radio and Apache Indian....when these songs could actually be hits in the UK. It's a drag that recent events have made things much more segregated in feeling now.
ivylander says
This is such a perfect example of how music intersects with life and human relationships and memory and the senses. Really lovely writing. Thanks so much for this.
LadyC says
thank you everyone, i made this post specifically for my friend mentioned, JV. She worked so hard to improve her life, circumstance and truly succeeded (i never doubted). we are not close anymore but I still admire her tremendously, as many others like her.
cooking while listening to bhangra is great for spicing up those bare white walls!
john, i haven't heard about apache in ages, he is like the bhangra version of shaggy.
nicki, it's much less interesting than it sounds but thanks lady. did you catch "this about philly murals":http://www.time.com/time/photogallery/0,29307,1649278,00.html?xid=rss-photos? it's very good work...
*My teenage years in Canada remain my most precious.*Our immigrant neighborhood became less segregated and the move to middle class less difficult. I remember one particular friend, she was mixed African and Muslim Indian in origin. Our paths crossed as I adjusted to a new school, new city and life.The new dwellings felt like home. I nestled into the kaleidescope of race and culture once again, my urban security blanket. This distinction brought on my very first notion of travel, the desire to discover other cultures deeply embedded itself into my heart.I became the girl who everyone adopted, fed with delicious meals and pampered like their own. I stitched myself into their families like a dear cousin, always the first to discuss their hopes and dreams, their family recipes, their daughter's and son's disobedient ways. I soaked in the myriad of flavour; the silky materials dazzled me, the spices tantalised and the music enthralled me day after day.My friend, who I will call JV, used to sit for hours with me after school watching music videos and swapping tapes. She had her African influences, Indian references, and then I joined in with my rocky new wave 80's schooling from my siblings. The other popular songs of the time resided easily amongst the mix. We loved "Freddy Mercury":http://www.queenonline.com/fmercury.html. Those few hours after class turned into parties and clubbing, her cultural community inviting me to their events. I licked "biryani":http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Biryani from my fingertips and imitated the Bhangra like moves in turn. All the hottest DJ's of that period always went back to the U.K. I can still see that group of friends, their eyes lighting up as they dreamed of such a definitive trip. Those young eyes, all spanning mixes of Seikh, Punjabi, Hindi, Muslim, Pakistani, Jamaican and me. This cultural identity of being Canadian and something else finally seemed comfortable, and the parties were great!The 80's and 90's were the prime of this transition from old to new, the strong Indian communities in England, Scotland and Canada at the forefront of the boom. One of the DJ's we adored was "Panjabi MC":http://www.pmcrecords.com/index.php?page=414901.*Bhangra has successfully fused* with hiphop, reggae, jungle and more since the beginning. While British Bhangra certainly played a pivotal role in the evolution and popularity of the genre, the origins are actually from the Punjab region of S.E. Asia.*The Origins of Bhangra*"While Bhangra historians speculate the dance may have originated in the time of the wars with Alexander, no one is sure it existed until about five hundred years ago. Around the 14th or 15th Century, Punjabi wheat farmers danced and sang songs about village life to help pass the time while working in the fields. With time, these became part of harvest celebrations at Bhaisakhi (April 13) festivals, as the sight of their crops growing invigorated the farmers. From here the dance quickly moved through all divisions of class and education, eventually becoming a part of weddings, New Year parties, and other important occasions."*What is Bhangra?*"Bhangra is a lively form of music and dance that originated in the Punjab region in Southeast Asia. As many Bhangra lyrics reflect the long and often tumultuous history of the Punjab, knowledge of Punjabi history offers important insights into the meaning of the music. While Bhangra began as a part of harvest festival celebrations, it eventually became a part of such diverse occasions as weddings and New Year celebrations. Moreover, during the last thirty years, Bhangra has enjoyed a surge in popularity worldwide..."*Links*"Bhangra Info via The Desi Flavor":http://jgohil.typepad.com/desiflavor/2004/03/history_of_bhan_1.html"The History of Modern Bhangra":http://www.desiclub.com/desimusic/muzik_newz/muzik_article.cfm?id=27"Panjabi MC Official Site":http://www.pmcrecords.com/index.php?page=414901*Like most high school friends,* the group we were slowly vanished with time. News of us each were encouraging though, and we all seemed to remember the same things, the same fun. I left home the earliest at 18, the world awaited but loyalty prevails. When passing through London, or Paris, or wherever, I still wonder if I will run into one of them. Well, at least we share this, no matter if or when.
Comments (13)