That’s just one of the memories and opinions that DJ Rekha, tireless queen of the NYC desi dance scene, shares in an interview out today in the Village Voice. Aside from the Voice’s Tricia Romano asking a question about Bollywood “blowing up” in an interview that she says was conducted on the day of the Bombay bombings, it’s a nice bit of back-and-forth; Romano more than redeems herself by designating Rekha “one of the city’s true treasures.”
One reason I wanted to post this was to give Rekha props for her straightforward and democratic opinions about nightlife:
Basement Bhangra’s stayed in one place; it hasn’t really moved around.
Well, I fortunately have a really good relationship with SOB’s. I’ve been preempted once, by Celia Cruz, which I gladly gave up my night for. But outside of that, clubland sucks. It’s hard to get a space where the venue gets what you’re doing musically. Now it’s like, if you don’t have a bottle crowd . . . I mean, I could have a bottle crowd, but I don’t want to. I don’t want those pricks at my place. I don’t want anyone who’s dumb enough to buy a bottle at my party. Can you quote me on that?
I’ll even blog you on that, sister Rekha! She’s also got a comment on the desi integration into American cultural life that you might find interesting:
The success of it all used to be more surprising, the whole success of Indian-ness as a cultural phenomena, everything from Deepak Chopra to yoga to this music. It’s not a spike. It’s more integrated, in subtle ways. Like before it would be a big deal if you saw anything Indian anywhere. And now, it’s like, ‘Oh, big deal. They’re playing some lounge track in a bar.’ Or ‘Big deal, there’s an Indian character on that reality show,’ America’s Next Top Model or whatever. It’s not as much of a shock. I think that just means that we’re here to stay.
President Allen knows it too. Hence the warm welcome.
Ha!
She is so awesome! Plus, with the cabaret laws there is no clubland.
We have a lot of culture in common. Desis are halfway assimilated when they step off the plane.
Forgive my ignorance, but what does “bottle crowd” refer to, here?
infants. They go up to the bar and ask for milk. They want it at exactly the right temperature, and never leave a good tip.
History of Bottle Service.
Is SOB = Sounds of Brazil?
If so, that place rocks! Er, sambas!
I obviously have much to learn in the ways of New York nightlife. To me, “buying a bottle” means getting a beer that’s not on tap.
“bottle service” means paying anywhere btw $300 – $1200 for a bottle of Grey Goose or liquor of choice. It is an inane and stupid practice but these clubs make money from it. What Rekha is saying is that you can pack a 500 capacity spot with 500 people, but if they aren’t the “bottle crowd” a club will tell you to piss off. It’s not about a scene, it’s about the bottom line and Rekha hit the nail on the head with that comment. Rekha rocks and I look forward to hearing her new compilation.
Thank you, Siddharth. As if BB wasn’t already packed to capacity every month…
It was nice to have more room the few occasions (anniversaries) in the past when she’s moved it up to Gramercy Park, but then there were no caipirinhas…
Rekha is quite an astute businesswoman, networker and promoter. However I’m afraid I can’t really give her any props for her djing ability. She’s never been on the cutting edge of Bhangra at least. She spins the same old shit she’s been spinning for 8 yrs every first thursday of the month.
After hearing DJ Spooky in the park on Sunday afternoon, I wish he’d take up residence at Basement Bhangra (or better yet, throw an alternative party since you can never have enough Bhangra!).
using someone’s free wireless connection to write this so as to not be traced back to my ip
spooky sux dude….at Talvin’s recent gig at Knitting Factory the man wasn’t djing anything – he was playing an ipod AND was overheard calling NYC boring as such he spends all his time in europe and asia
with that “talent” and attitude….he can kiss my ass and stay overseas
The Desi will preferably integrate into american cultural life without “selling out” into “american CeltoScots-WASP culture”. The progressive Desi is still desi-american, rather than simply American. It is quite strange and, to me, depressing, that many south asian emigrants can feel more american than a south asian like me with roots in the country. Desi “assimilation” is a no go for me. You would not agree ?
It’s funny hearing a DJ moan about club owners with respect to their choice of patrons. As a person in a band, I always moan about club owners with respect to their choice of entertainment. The number of clubs offering live bands, irrespective of genre, has dwindled considerably in the last 10 years simply because it’s much cheaper to have a DJ and you don’t have to subject the audience to original music. I guess the grass is always greener…
Working for the premier alt weekly you think she’d know the politically correct term for the community is makaka.
To be honest with y’all, I really don’t know much about bhangra (and by the way, I’d like to be schooled. Anyone willing to burn a favorites CD for me with a few comments? I’d be hella grateful, so holla at me, my macacas) so I’ll withhold comment on this. However, what I will say is that I regard Rekha first and foremost as a cultural entrepreneur, and I think that will be her lasting contribution to the scene.
hahaha
I love this macaca word.
This word has to be used always now.
WHERE MY MACACA’S AT?!
I’m a regular at Basement Bhangra (BB) simply because it’s the only party of its kind in NYC, and because I love bhangra music. I give Rekha total respect for having the concept, putting it into action, and watching BB grow into the phenomenon it is today. Half the people are non-desis, and quite a lot of them seem to be regulars too. She’s put a lot of work into it…but musically, I have to agree with Big Bhapa (post #11). I’m a HUGE bhangra fan, I always keep up with the latest releases from the UK (the true home of bhangra in the current era), and I’d have to say that by and large Rekha does not play a majority of the simply amazing bhangra tracks that have come out in the past 3-4 years. A lot of what she plays IS the same old thing from many years ago. I understand that a)for most of the crowd there, it hardly matters what gets played, they just want to dance and probably all bhangra sounds the same to them anyway, and b)Rekha plays what she likes to listen to personally. But I think that there is an opportunity being lost to present the latest in UK bhangra to an American desi audience. The quality of the music being released in the UK over the past few years has been really good, I wish it got played more at BB. That being said I will continue to attend and support BB because like I said, there is really nothing else like it in NYC. Rekha, if you’re listening, I would happily volunteer to let you burn ALL my cd’s for free, in the interests of BB, and promoting the latest Punjabi music. Better yet, let me pick the songs for you one night.
Whoo, I had a Brit Asian musician pull out his willy on me TWICE at BB and keep trying to get jiggy with me. Go Rekha for telling the band they’d never play NYC again. 😉 I also was felt up by a black dude while holding a camera above my head, and talked to a doctor in a turban who said he was looking for his “future baby’s mama” at BB. Classy crowd that night, yo. 😉
Amitabh,
what are some of the songs you would recommend?
Midwestern eastender, EWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWW!
Must say, one of the funniest things about being there is watching some of the Punjabi mundas perform for each other, which seems to be far more important to them than interacting with any females present.
With regard to female behaviour, I was there one night when both Sarina Jain and Amber (?) – that Pakistani-American girl with the high-pitched voice who was/is on VDesi too – dropped by for a while.
Totally contrary to their TV personas (Sarina all extroverted and energetic, and Amber all demure and sweet), Sarina danced for a little bit with great restraint, whereas Miss Amber was totally sluttin’ it up on the dance floor, doing some grinding and moves that I haven’t seen since that HBO series on stripclubs.
ok I know why this is funny, but its quite apropriate in the desh to do that, and one could say, its a bit refreshing to dance without the idea that dancing for a man is only a prelude to trying to hook up
Oh. My. God. Midwestern Eastender…. I totally know that dude. I am very sad that you had to meet him. He sucks.
And by “that dude” I meant the turbanned doctor who said he was looking for his future baby’s mama. He uses the same line on his Sikh Matrimonials posting… I know because he tried hooking up with my friend. Gross.
Filmiholic:
I remember that night…Amber was HOT! As for the Punjabi munde, bhangra was traditionally a male dance, and it is a male-bonding experience. However, most of those guys hit on plenty of women, in very crude ways as has been alluded to.
Gal Sun:
I will definitely post a list of what I consider the best songs of the past few years…I’ll try to do it tonight.
You’ll also see mostly its people from India or who are really into Bhangra who will dance together in groups without interacting much with the opposite sex. For one thing, its not easy to dance bhangra in a couple since the moves are not meant to be done as a couple’s dance. Another thing is traditionally Bhangra isn’t done for the purpose of couple’s dancing; its a communal type of dance that originated in a society that was publically gender-segregated. Also, speaking as a guy who loves bhangra, I’m always totally impressed by women who get down to bhangra whether they do traditional moves or hybrid moves, or giddhha or bhangra moves. But I’m not about to try to get jiggy with her, because that would just ruin her vibe, and more than anything else, bhangra is about catching a spirit. How gauche would it be to try to grind up on a person who’s blazing through their moves?
Just wanted to give the other side to the story on that tip Filmiholic!
Thanks to the three of you, yeah, I get the history of it.
It’s just that the contrast between what you guys have spoken about and what I mentioned, compared to the wide varieties of attempted hooking up that’s interesting.
And I think I would recognize that doctor dude, he’s a regular, and soon looks very, very comfortable with any and all ladies he gets out on the dancefloor.
Closing note, aside from what is and isn’t socially acceptable in public, I can’t imagine exhibiting any sensitive body part out on the floor; you get accidentally bumped into, stepped on and kicked so often (like any club) that I’d think that’d be a highly risky behaviour. Ouch!
I wanna know who the British Asian musician that pulled his willy out twice and tried it one with midwesterner eastender was….
Go on give us a clue….
nah so far its only two of us i think. but yeah i feel you (haw haw) on your comments though! i wish the club scene was generally less antagonistic but then again, that ain’t about to happen
For some excellent traditional bhangra dancing, copy/paste the following link:
http://youtube.com/watch?v=yw1WR7PcFqc
Macaca Man, he didn’t whip out his willy on the dancefloor, where it might get kicked. 😉 I was sitting and waiting to interview Rekha after the club had closed and he was talking to me and I was thinking nothing of it until he grabbed the back of my neck, pushed my head into his lap and there it was. Since I couldn’t LEAVE the club and had NEVER in my 27 years had anything like that happen before, I froze like a deer in headlights and pushed him away and kept chatting. He later grabbed my hand and eyyeww, he had freed willy again! Thank goddess Rekha came upstairs at that point and I escaped. I was so entirely stunned by the whole thing that my red-hot fury and screaming rage only hit me later while stuck at Penn Station at 3am trying to get to Long Island.
As far as I know, the dude isn’t in the band any more. It’s impolite to give you their name, but I’ll just say that ever since hearing the story, my Brit Asian friends have referred to them as “Rhythm Dick Bollocks.” 😉
midwestern eastender
What a fukkin’ creep, sorry to hear about it. Rhythm Dick Bollocks eh? I think I get it 😉
dj rekha is awful, go to basement, u will see how uncreative she is with her mixing, and how lame and repeated the songs she plays are. anyone could do what she does, she was just the first one to do it, and plus shes a girl, woopidee doo! shes lame.
OK, just offhand after a quick look through some of my cd’s, here are some great songs that have all come out in the past 3 years or so (a few may go back 4 years but I haven’t included anything older than that). A few of these songs have been played at BB but most haven’t. There are many great songs that are older than 4 years old that have never been played at BB either but I haven’t listed them. Finally, there are many good songs that DO get played at BB so I didn’t list them either. Most of these are UK songs, one or two are from Canada or India.
1)Giddhe De Vich (Popsy – Bangin!) 2)Bhangra Punjabiyan Ne (Popsy – Bangin!) 3)Aaja Soniye (Jeeti – Off The Hook) 4)Surma (Lehmber Hussainpuri – Ne Baliyeh) 5)Ne Baliyeh (Ne Baliyeh) 6)Panj Bindiyan (Ominous DJ’s – Unfinished Business) 7)Jatt Hate (Ominous DJ’s – Unfinished Business) 8)Kanoo Mardan (Simon Nandhra – Underestimated) 9)Loko Wadaya (Simon Nandhra – Underestimated) 10)Putt Sardaran De (Simon Nandhra – Underestimated) 11)Rann Botal Vargi (Taj-E – Look Again) 12)Sanehvaal Chounk (Tru Skool/Specialist – Word Is Born) 13)Dhullah (Tru Skool/Specialist – Word Is Born)
*Actually EVERY song on Tru Skool/Specialist’s album Word Is Born is amazing.
14)Chuware Wali (Tarli Digital – Gabroo Punjab Deh) 15)Dhol Vaja Ke (Jazzy B – Dhol Vaja Ke) 16)Put Sardaran De (Pure Desi Volume 1 – VIP records) 17)All the following songs from the album Sparked by Northern Lights: Jannab, Billo Tere Nakhre, Matador, Poundan Naal 18)Dil (Gettin’ Serious) 19)Melene (Gettin’ Serious) 20)Sohniye feat MC Drilla (Pure NRG) 21)Pasand (Mentor Kolektiv – Broke) 22)Boliyan (Kais – Club Vich) 23)Dhulla (RDB – Three) 24)Suga Kane Boliyan (Big Suga Kane – Desi Platinum) 25)Nachde Punjabi (Sweet & Sexy The Album) 26)Lak Da Hulara (D/I/P – Room 18) 27)Limca (D/I/P – Room 18) 28)Challa (Desi Crew – Solid) 29)The following songs from the album 4 Folk Sake by ADH: Mukadmaa, Putt Sardaran De, Punjab 30)Nain Preeto De (Panjabi By Nature – Settin’ The Standard) 31)G.T Road (Genie-Us) 32)Mu Jor Jor (Indy Sagu – Indystructable) 33)Laadli Boliyan (Sarvjeet Kaur – Mast Javani) 34)Koka (Narinder Gogie – The Real Deal) 35)Tainu Paun Badle ( Nachhatar Gill – Saadi Gall) 36)The following songs from the album Romeo by Jazzy B : Dil Luteya, Yaari, Romeo, Soorma, Rakh Samb Ke) 37)Many songs from many albums released by Untouchables Records including Jatt Da Truck (from album Unstoppable) 38)The following from the album 4 My Sinz by J. Skillz : Akh Sharabi, Kinne Katal, Jawani, Jatt Chalea) 39)Bari Khol Ke (Indy Sagu – The Debut)
There are many more…that was just a sampling.
Thanks a lot! IÂ’ve heard all those songs before (except for Ominous DJ’s and Sarvjeet Kaur) and they get play at various DJ parties here and I live in a semi rural area in the South. IÂ’m shocked that those songs donÂ’t get play at BB.
this is a much better representation of bhangra dancing, even though it’s an advert http://youtube.com/watch?v=mrAL4hkFPkQ
even if bhangra basement can get a bit monotonous, catching a glimpse of cute girl getting her bhangra groove on.. NEVER gets boring..
Amitabh – thanks for the list. Yes, the Tru Skool album does totally rock.. err.. nachda 🙂