British Bhangra music has an extensive history as a musical fusion between cultures. It is a genre of music that combines Punjabi bhangra beats and lyrics with UK pop, RnB and other musical sounds.
However, what many individuals won’t know, is that Bhangra music’s history in Britain derives from the Midlands, or more specifically the Black Country and Birmingham regions of the Midlands.
To celebrate this history and Birmingham’s legacy as the birthplace of British Bhangra music, Birmingham City University (BCU) is launching a new cultural project.
The University has teamed up with experts in South Asian popular culture to map 40 years of heritage – from 1970’s influences on contemporary trends. This collaboration is a mass effort by the University, set to honour British-Asian musical history in the Midlands.
Image: Birmingham City University Press Office
Narinder Singh Winnie, a former musician who represents the British Bhangra music industry in the West Midlands, said: “Bhangra music is huge right now”.
“It’s been popularised on a global scale by artists such as Diljit Dosanjh, who is selling out massive arenas in the USA. But not many people know it originated here in the Black Country.”
This project will therefore increase the historical awareness of British Bhangra music and cement it as a Midlands originated sound.
Narinder also said, “I want to educate people about how the scene here developed and the major influences”.
“Working with BCU will ensure we get this right and create a complete map of our legacy.”
He has also joined experts and creatives from the Europe, India, Pakistan and the USA at a recent conference – ‘Bees Saal Baad’ (‘20 years later’) – to network and share ideas. This project has therefore amassed a global presence as well as regional.
Delegates across these areas and in the conference explored issues of gender, LGBTQ+, disability, the global movement of people from South Asia – focusing on India, Pakistan, Bangladesh, Nepal, Sri Lanka, as well as Birmingham, which is home to many people of South Asian heritage.
The conference was also a chance for them to review two decades of the pioneering South Asian Popular Culture journal, which was founded 21 years ago.
Dr Rajinder Dudrah, Professor of Cultural Studies and the Creative Industries at BCU, explained why the journal, which champions all forms of South Asian popular culture, began.
Image: Birmingham City University Press Office
He said, “I was a PhD researcher giving a paper on Indian cinema and British Bhangra music when I was approached by a publisher from Taylor and Francis,”.
He went onto describe how this journal is a profound achievement as one of the very South Asian centred publications, “They asked if I had considered developing the idea. At the time, I hadn’t, but I was aware that not many journals catered to the South Asian area or movement of people.
“I became a founding co-editor of the journal, alongside Professor Gita Rajan and the late Moti Gokulsing. We work with colleagues from the UK, USA, Europe, India, and South Asia on every issue.”
Now, 21 years, 22 volumes, and 15 special editions later, the journal brings together like-minded academics, artists, and researchers via subscriptions from 3,000 institutions worldwide each year. In 2023 alone the journal was downloaded 45,000 times.
The British Bhangra and Birmingham project will be led by the incredible Professor Rajinder Dudrah at BCU and is certainly set to inspire musical passion and provide an amazing platform to honour the legacy of British-Asian music in Birmingham and the Black Country.
