Bhangra Book

Punch presents Bhangra The worlds first Book on this UK genre Saturday 15th Sept at the Brunei Gallery saw the private launch of Bhangra, the first book of its kind looking at the British Bhangra phenomenon. Ammo Talwar from Punch Records, Dr Rajinder Dudrah, Senior Lecturer in Film and Media Studies at the University of Manchester, along with and Boy Chana, Photographer, came up with concept of the book. Ammo explains, “The book evolved out of the images, memorabilia and stories that partly developed from the 'Soho Road to Punjab' exhibition.” The book is an introduction to British Bhangra music, using the city of Birmingham as a starting point to map out the journey that UK Bhangra has traveled, from its folk beginnings in the Punjab, to a fusion-based music in Post-war Britain, to now in the 2000s having crossed over into the mainstream through American Hip Hop artists and others using the Bhangra beat and sounds. The book draws on interviews with artists (both men and women), lyricists and promoters of the Bhangra scene, including analysis of some of the lyrics and album covers to give a unique insight into the workings of British Bhangra music.   Author Dr Rajinder Dudrah explains how this book will appeal to a number of readers, “for one, the 'retro' audience who are now in their 30s and 40s and were the youth who were present at the live music events during the heydays of Bhangra in the 80s. Young people who are into British Asian music but might not know the history and importance of Bhangra music since the 60 and 70s. It can also be used at an academic level where GCSE, A-level and university students on media and cultural studies courses can draw on it as a resource in their studies; as well the general reader interested in aspects of British Bhangra music and its industry.” Publically available through Amazon, Waterstones and UK Independent outlets – Nov 19th 2007 For more info contact ammo on +44 (0)121 224 7444 or This e-mail address is being protected from spam bots, you need JavaScript enabled to view it