[Reader-list] is bhangra pop taking over?

[Greg Wise]

There are a number of sources out there on the bhangra scene in the UK. A
key text in this regard is Sanjay Sharma, John Hutnyk, and Ashwani Sharma
(eds) (1996) Dis-Orienting Rhythms: The Politics of the New Asian Dance
Music. Zed Books.

See also Les Back's chapter on Apache Indian in his "New Ethnicities and
Urban Culture" (1996, University of College London Press), George Lipsitz's
chapter on Apache Indian in "Dangerous Crossroads" (1994, Verso), and Andy
Bennett's chapter on Bhangra and Asian Identity in "Popular Music and Youth
Culture: Music, Identity, Place" (2000, Macmillan). 

Some of the connections between the bhangra and hip hop scenes in the UK are
made in David Hesmondhalgh & Caspar Melville's chapter "Urban Breakbeat
Culture" in Tony Mitchell's Global Noise: Rap and Hip-Hop Outside the USA
(2001, Wesleyan University Press).

On the bhangra scene in New York, see Sunaina Marr Maira's "Desis in the
House: Indian American Youth Culture in New York City" (2002, Temple
University Press).

I don't have anything about its perception in India, just anecdotal evidence
about (for example) the reception of Apache Indian. I would be interested if
anyone had studies on this.

Cheers,

Greg 

J. Macgregor Wise
Associate Professor
Communication Studies
Arizona State University West

> -----Original Message-----
> From: staun [mailto:list at subroutine.de] 
> Sent: Friday, January 17, 2003 5:35 AM
> To: reader-list at sarai.net
> Subject: [Reader-list] is bhangra pop taking over?
> 
> 
> 
> Dear list,
> it's hard to tell if it's the breakthrough of a genre or just another
> one-hit-wonder: Panjabi MC's bhangra-pop song "Mundian to 
> bach ke" that stormed the german charts end of last year and 
> will now be re-released in Britain. Anyway, the attempt to 
> cross the border between two musical parallel universes 
> within the U.K., between the world of High Street megastores 
> and Indipop cornershops is remarkable.
> 
> I cannot deny that, as a cultural critic without any greater 
> insight nor
> 
> preference for that kind of music, I am as much interested in 
> the question where that sound comes from as in the question 
> when it will go away again. Any hints to interesting material 
> about the U.K. bhangra scene, its perception in India, its 
> significance as culture or economy would be very welcome.
> 
> "The empire strikes back" was Pico Iyer's thesis on the 
> gaining relevance of post-colonial or second generation 
> immigrants on british literature. Will Panjabi MC be the 
> Salman Rushdie of pop?
> 
> Best,
> Harald Staun
> 
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