Synopsis
Programme
WARNING SPOILER!!! - Click here for Short Synopsis (Teaser)
ACT I
In a small village in the Punjab, Bibiji sings a lullaby to her young son, Twinkle (Twinkle, Twinkle). Time passes, Bibiji has died and Twinkle is now a young man celebrating the harvest with his friends (Field Song). Jussi, a young woman new to the village catches his eye and Twinkle is immediately smitten with her. He approaches her father and is given permission to marry her, provided that he promises to work hard to earn the means to support her. The couple are married and Twinkle swears to his new bride that he will always be faithful. Twinkle comes to England looking for work, promising to send for Jussi as soon as he has made the money to provide a home for them (Land of Hope and Glory). In England, Twinkle gets a job as a driver, ferrying around a group of mature ladies (Hai O Rabba [Gossip Song]). At the temple, Shinde, a new arrival for Punjab, is deserted by her arranged marriage husband on their wedding day. She fears returning home in rejection and resolves to stay in Britain and run the businesses that were their wedding gift. Twinkle, meanwhile, prays for a better life for himself and Jussi (Temple Prayer). Back in the Punjab, the other women of the village tease Jussi as she waits for a long overdue telephone call from Twinkle, she responds by pretending Jussi has called and will soon be sending for her (Telephone Song). Meanwhile Twinkle and Rocky have discovered a mutual love of music and form a singing group, The Bhangra Stars and discover they can make more money singing at weddings and birthday parties (Boliyan Montage). They make a record at Shinde's recording studio (Studio Ballad) which is a big hit, selling in all the Asian shops, but the wily Shinde reaps most of the profits, having made them sign a contract giving her the rights to all their recordings. Even so, Twinkle has finally made enough money to send for Jussi to join him - invoking Shinde's jealousy since she loves Twinkle and did not know he had a wife. Life is not as Jussi expected it to be either, Twinkle is never home, being constantly on the road with Rocky and Shinde (Truck Song). Twinkle is feeling the pressure too, he has an argument with Rocky before going off with a girl fan. Rocky then confronts Shinde, who has been exploiting them both, and tells her she no longer owns him as he is leaving the band. When the brother of the girl Twinkle went off with comes looking for the man who defiled her, Shinde sees an opportunity for revenge and directs him after Rocky. There is a fight (The Fight [Instrumental]) in which Rocky is stabbed. When Twinkle comes looking for Rocky to apologise and make up from their argument, he finds him dying. Twinkle is distraught at the loss of his best friend (Dhum Dhum [Funeral Song]) and for a long time is unable to perform. Shinde, meanwhile, has found a new star, asian rapper and remix artist D.J. Lovely, who makes a hit album from a remix of Twinkle's old recordings (Jugni Ragga). Twinkle objects, but Shinde owns the rights to all his work and Twinkle finds himself left out in the cold.
ACT I
Years go by. Shinde is now a business mogul, her ruthless exploitation having made all her enterprises a huge success (I Got the Power). She is planning a new live show, "Britain's Got Bhangra," which she hopes will raise her profile higher than ever. Twinkle and Jussi, on the other hand, are struggling. Shinde has never kept her promises to pay Twinkle the royalties she owes him and without Twinkles earnings they could not maintain their lifestyle and most of what they owned is gone. Jussi is working to support them but it is not enough and demands that Twinkle go to the job centre to get a job. Twinkle, however, still dreams of a singing career and begs Jussi to give him one more chance to make it work (One More Dream), promising to get a job if he fails. Twinkle goes to audition for "Britain's Got Bhangra" but Shinde rejects him as a has been, although she keeps his audtion tape. Another young man, Jason, who has been recently orphaned, arrives at the recording studio in search of the father he has never met (For My Papa). When he agrees to sing for the audition (For My Papa [reprise]) Shinde realises she has found a new and checks that he signed her contract when he arrived at the studio. Despondent, Twinkle gets drunk (One More Dream [reprise]) and falls down in the street. Jason comes across him and helps him home. Twinkle insists that Jason stay the night and Jussi agrees that he can sleep in the baby room (the couple never having been blessed with a child). Twinkle falls into a drunken slumber and Jussi reflects on how much she loves him and has come to accept that she will never have a child (Goodnight Baby). Jason returns to the recording studio where Shinde gets him to record Twinkle's new song (Studio Ballad). Shinde recognises some of Jason's mannerisms and realises that she knows the identity of his father - it is Twinkle. D.J. Lovely arrives and complains at being left out, insisting that he is her number one star (Rap Off), but Shinde reminds that she has all the power since he too has signed one of her contracts. Jussi confronts Shinde over the money that she and Twinkle are owed but Shinde retaliates by spitefully revealing that Jason is Twinkle's son. Twinkle never suspected this and is dumbfounded by the revelation, whilst Jussi is distraught at the revelation that Twinkle has cheated on her. She insists that Twinkle never see Jason again or they will live their lives sharing the same house but never again speaking to each other. The news that Twinkle has a son whilst Jussi has never been able to concede becomes the topic of conversation for the local gossips (Hai O Rabba [reprise]). Jason resents that Twinkle let him grow up without being part of his life but Twinkle never knew of his existence. Twinkle, on the other hand, has found a connection with someone for the first time since he lost Rocky (Dhum Dhum [reprise]). In heaven, Bibiji has been watching over Twinkle and decides the time has come to intervene. She tells Twinkle the time has come to take control of his life and reminds Jussi that she always wanted a son and Jason is in need of mother - they are a family and should stick together (Bibi's Back). Jussi forgives Twinkle and accepts Jason, Twinkle apologises for his mistakes and Jason puts aside the past - they are a family and will go forward together (Mein Jaana Mein Kaun [I Know Who I Am]). At the Britain's Got Bhangra award ceremony, Shinde, who has appointed the judges, wins the 'Lifetime Acheivement' award, and makes a speech in which she thanks herself since she did it all alone. Suddenly the power goes off. In the darknes, an official from the power company arrives to explain the power has been cut because off unpaid bills, forcing Shinde to sign a new contract. The power is restored and Shinde discovers she has been tricked into signing a document releasing Twinkle and Jason from their contracts. Worse, the gossips appear and accuse Shinde of having killed her husband to inherit his empire. The show goes ahead to prove to the World that Britain's Got Bhangra.
Impressions/Performances
Pravesh Kumar's "Britain's Got Bhangra" is a celebration of that supremely joyous and expressive form of music. Bhangra is a uniquely British/Asian musical form that arose amidst the (mostly) second/third generation asian communities of the nineteen-seventies and eighties. It fuses eastern musical styles, played on eastern instruments, with a western beat and in so doing produces a result that is more than the sum of the parts. It does not so much copy western styles, as strip them down and rebuild them in it's own image. Although Bhangra has long been huge amongst the Asian community, being sung mostly in Punjabi it remains something of an unknown quantity for those of western origin - which makes this production a great opportunity for westerners like myself to discover what Bhangra is all about.
The story charts the rise and development of Bhangra, from it's earliest roots to its current day influences, through the rise and fall of Twinkle, a fictional Bhangra star. As a musical it is a little rough around the edges, it doesn't always flow as smoothly as it should and at times the story feels a little too drawn-out. A particular frustration for western viewers (and one which I have found to be common to previous Rifco Arts productions) is that all the best jokes - certainly the ones that gain the biggest laughs - are told in Punjabi or based on some twist in Asian that those of us of non-Asian origin cannot understand. This frequently results in half the audience (which was roughly a 50-50 Western/Asian mix) rolling about laughing whilst the other half are left wondering what we just missed. As a non-Asian, if you have a Punjabi speaking friend to go along with perhaps you could pump them for an explanation, otherwise be prepared to feel a little left out at times. But these are minor irritations compared to the fun and style of the production and the verve and vigour of the music. The action is more than a little cheesy at times, in typical Bollywood over-the-top fashion - never more so than in the heavenly appearance of Babiji with two white robed celestial escorts - but it's all done tongue in cheek and makes for great fun. The set also is cleverly imaginative consisting of a row of shop fronts with roll-up shutters. One of these opens to reveal a very passable imitation of a Volkswagen camper van which is wheeled out to take part in the action (and which visibly deteriorates as Twinkle's career falters). Another houses the live band which pumps out the music with great vigour.
But what this show is really about is the music and the dancing and it is in these areas that the production is at it's best. Twinkle is played by real-life Bhangra star Shin, who has an amazing voice and enormous charisma that really brings out the essence of his character and holds the proceedings together in a superbly sympathetic performance. Arun Blair Mangat also has a great voice as Jason and an air of innocence that made him perfect casting for the role of the orphan in search of his roots. Sophiya Haque was a delight throughout as Twinkle's nemesis Shinde, a ruthless entrepreneur with an axe to grind against men after being badly let down by them. It is a role for the right performer to revel and Sophiya certainly sets out to prove that she is just that. She has great stage presence and a great voice, providing, for me, the musical highlight of the evening with her second-half opening rendition of "I Got the Power" - she certainly has - a kind of Asian Shirley Bassey. Natasha Lewis looks good and acts well as Twinkle's wife Jussi and the rest of the predominantly young ensemble fill the stage with an array of colourful, comic characters.
It is an exuberant and fast-paced show with infectious music, scintillating dancing, moving pathos and (when you can understand it) great comedy. A little overly long perhaps, but otherwise a refreshing change to the general run of British musical offerings and, for anyone not familiar with Bhangra, a perfect introduction to the genre. Britain has got Bhangra - and is certainly richer for it.
Verdict
Colourful, fresh and vibrant, a real shot in the arm for British musical culture.
Don Gillan - www.stagebeauty.net