Bhangra was in the beginning a Punjabi folk dance which has since expanded in several ways. As far as dance is concerned, the idea of bhangra has expanded to include the style of music used to play along with bhangra dance. In terms of its reach, it has spread beyond rural Punjab to develop into an internationally recognized style of song and dance.

Bhangra began as just a folk dance
that was restricted to the Punjab during the harvest
festival of Baisakhi. It was performed only by
men, and the women would dance the giddha.
In time bhangra grew to embrace
 the giddha dance and   a number of other rural Punjabi folk

dances. It expanded in popularity to the point where bhangra was  found over much of Northwest India and Pakistan.

In addition, it could be performed on any festive
occasion, and not just during the harvest
festival.

Bhangra began
to make its mark internationally during the
1970's. At this time, artists such as A.S. Kang
and Kuldip Manak began to make a commercial
success from it. It was also in this period that
bhangra began to be widely accepted as a genre of
music rather than simply a dance form.

In the following years  bhangra grew into a truly
international phenomenon. It is to be found
wherever there is a large expatriate Indian
community.  Implicit in
the bhangra are not just the music and dance, but
also a lifestyle. At first, this might be hard to
conceive, but it certainly is not a unique
occurrence as  the most well known example of
this kind of thing was the disco movement in the
late 70s; disco too encompassed music, dance, as
well as a whole lifestyle.

Bhangra is not a single dance but is actually
composed of several sub-genera. Generally these

are:

• daankara,

• dhamal,
  
• gatka,
  
• giddha,
• jhumar,

• julli,

• kikli,
  
• luddi, and
  
• the saami.
  

Daankara - The word

"daankara", comes from the word "daan", which
means "stick". As the name implies, this dance is
performed with sticks.

This dance tends to be done
at weddings. It has a certain similarity to the
dandiya raas of Gujarat.

Dhamal - The dhamal is a
particularly energetic form of folk dance. This
dance is done by the participants forming a
circle. In this the dancers hold their hands in
the air as they dance about, there are many
interjections and much shouting. Gatka - The gatka
is dance that is performed with swords, daggers,
or sticks. It is said that this dance was started
after the martyrdom of the fifth Guru Arjun Dev.
Giddha - This is primarily a women's dance

Jhumar
- The word "jhumar", means to "swing". The jhumar
is a men's dance that is performed at weddings and
other festive events. It developed in the
Sandalbar, and Balochistan area of Pakistan. It is
characterised by a particular rhythm which is
substantially slower than that which is normally
used in bhangra.

Julli - Where most of the forms
of bhangra are done by groups of people, julli may
be done by a single person. It has its origins in
the dance of the Muslim holy men and may be done
from a sitting posture.

Kikli - The kikli is
generally performed by women. For this, women lock
there hands and swing about in circles. These are
usually pairs of girls, but on occasion four girls
may perform this move.

Luddi - The luddi is a
dance that contains a vary characteristic posture
of the bhangra. In this, the dancer has one hand
behind their head and the other hand outstretched.

Saami - This is usually considered strictly a women's
dance.

All Punjabi dances are ages old and steeped

in the mysteries of time, but we still have

them here today to enjoy and reenact in festivals,

gatherings and performances of many exciting kinds.