Last week I had the opportunity to participate in a Bhangra competition. For those of you who do not know what Bhangra is, it is a very energetic traditional dance form of Punjab, India. This was my team’s very first time competing in a competition before. While we didn’t place first place at the bhangra competition, I got closer with my sisters as well as made friends with the other groups that were competing and had a lot of fun.

So, let’s backtrack a little. ONE WEEK BEFORE THE COMPETITION……. It is less than a week from my very first bhangra competition and all the dancers are working hard to perfect every step of their dances in hopes of achieving a Platinum ranking. In Bhangra, the most important element is your non-stop smile that stays throughout your eight to ten minute performance. My team, ATL Di Rooh were trying to make bomb formations, which brings me to the second element. The second most element is how you present your dance. Your choreo can be awesome but if your formations are weak, then it’s game over for your team. We all were struggling with our formations which caused issues in our team. Everyday we would practice right after school and then stay up until 12-1 am and strictly practicing, not even doing my actual homework that was due the next day. Now, I look back at it and miss these daily pep talks and constant arguing.

ONE DAY BEFORE THE COMPETITION….. We have less than 24 hours before we perform on stage where the judges will grade us based on the elements mentioned above. We had multiple breakdowns and did not want to perform the next day because we felt that we were not ready. We were still fixing our formations and were very iffy on our steps to each of the songs.

COMPETITION DAY…….. The day that we have been waiting for is finally here. My whole team had butterflies in their stomaches and were nervous about this competition. Our captain took us out to get our nails done so that we could relax. We had so many pep talks before our performance. After we get our nails done, we ate and went straight to the venue. In the car ride, there were about 16 of us in a minivan. For those of you guys that are asking how we all were able to fit inside that car well we were getting very late and so we all decide it would be a smart decision that all of us could fit in. When we got to the venue, we practiced on stage once before we got ready. The speakers burst, “Next performance is ATL DI ROOH” my heart skipped a beat as my teammates assured us that we will do well. As the music plays and we enter the stage, the audience roared and my smile appeared.

AFTERMATH…… As the curtains are going down, all of us hugged each other tightly, chanting our team’s annual song. I wish I could perform again and again however we still had to find out what position we placed in. The time was 8pm and I decided to go eat and take countless amounts of pictures. Towards 11pm, the judges called all the teams saying that they were ready to announce the top three winners. “WELCOME BACK, ARE YOU GUYS READY FOR THE RESULTS? OKAY... IN THIRD PLACE WE HAVE ATL DI ROOH.” I didn’t move. I just stared blank. My team pulled me out of my imaginary bubble and we ran to take the trophy and the awarded amount of money.

This was our first time performing and honestly I wish I can go back to this moment and replay it because it was one of the best moments of my life.