Edinburgh

Indians may seem to have little visible heritage in the iconic city of Edinburgh, but her citizens have a long and important history in India. Edinburgh Scots had a tradition of administration and scholarship in South Asian affairs during the days of the Raj. Today it is Scotland's principal centre of academic expertise on Indian matters. In 1791 William Robertson - a Professor and Principal at Edinburgh University - wrote the first European text to take a serious interest in India's commerce and cultures. In the colonial period, many Edinburgh graduates worked in the Indian sub-continent either in the Government services, as missionaries, in trade, in the military or in industry. Without low skilled, low paid work calling out for migrants from rural India, Edinburgh instead has traditionally attracted visionary, creative people; students, brainworkers. Today its writers and contemporary composers, its festivals and celebrations across the year - from the International to the Fringe to Hogmanay - have a global reputation. Bhangra in Edinburgh's small Indian community has not been closely associated with Punjabis and Sikhs, and instead enjoyed by the city's South Asians as a whole. Until recently, local Bhangra was more likely to be performed by traditional dance troupes than Desi Culture DJs. Cities like Edinburgh with less developed cultural traditions are are more likely to experiment. Staring in 2005 the Scottish Indian Arts Forum launched a fusion spectacle for the festivals of Baisakhi and Beltane; Bhangra-Ceilidh.  This brought together Punjabi folk dancers / musicians Nachda Sansaar and fiddle driven folk group Bella McNab's Dance Band. Starting at George Watson's School it then moved on to the campus of Edinburgh University. Bhangra musicians have also featured in the city's October Dusshera festival parade. Since 1994, Edinbugh's strongest proponent of Bhangra – and of all Asian arts - has been the Mela. The roster of world class perfomers has included Jassi Sidhu, Hunterz,  Dr Zeus, Stereo Nation, Gunjam Singh, Tigerstyle and the Angel Dancers. Fusion performances have included a Rajasthani brass band, a Scottish/South Asian choir performing the combined works of Rabindranath Tagore and Robert Burns. There has also been a collaboration between the Edinburgh Samba School and the Indian Music and Dance Collective. Comments (0) Write comment Name Comment Add Comment

 

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