Bagpipes and Bhangra
Creative and cool or cultural appropriation?
Bagpipes are a distinctly Scottish instrument. I’ve heard bagpipes playing Amazing Grace and been stunned by the beauty of it.
Bhangra is a traditional folk dance of Punjab, a region in India. It was associated with harvest time and is therefore celebratory and very upbeat. The music associated with traditional bhangra was played on a dhol, a type of drum that is played with two sticks.
In modern times, however, many modern instruments have been used to accompany the bhangra dancers, from violins to keyboards.
However, until recently I’d never heard of someone combining bagpipes with bhangra, the way this amazing performer does.
Here is a screenshot of the video:
I loved this video and shared with some of my friends from several different countries — America, Germany, India, and Bangladesh. They all loved it.
Which I think is great, but it also begs the questions — is what the artist is doing cool and creative, or is…
