London: The pulsating beats of bhangra reached the royal environs of the Buckingham Palace as Queen Elizabeth hosted a reception for Indian-origin achievers ahead of a state visit by President Pratibha Patil later this month.
Leading British-Indian citizens from the field of sports, writing, acting and business gathered together last night to watch a performance by cultural group Nutkhut in the palace ballroom, under the shadow of a 30-feet domed red velvet canopy, used at the coronation durbar of King George V and Queen Mary in Delhi in 1911.
Performers from the dance group Nutkhut, founded by husband and wife team of Ajay Chhabra and Simmy Gupta, performed a 15-minute extract from the couple's show Bollywood Steps, inspired by Indian movies.
The couple said they were honoured to be representing Indian arts at the palace.
Chhabra, speaking about the opulent surroundings of the royal residence, said "We felt the setting leant itself to a film set -- the columns, the fabric of the canopy -- the bling of it stood out."
Chhabra's wife Simmy Gupta who jointly choreographed the show said: "It's a real privilege and honour to be asked to perform in the palace. We're British, we're Asian, we are contemporary, we also know our roots."
"Bollywood Steps is me growing up in England being a British Asian. It is influenced by Bollywood films and Hollywood films. It goes from my classically trained background to contemporary hip-hop. It is up to date, really sexy and hot," Gupta said.
Five female dancers and three males performed in the 15-minute show. It was a truncated version of the 40-minute outdoor show which Nutkhut has been performing around Britain for the past four years and is described as "a spectacular celebration of all that is kitsch in Indian cinema".
Other guests at the event included cricketer Monty Panesar, Coronation Street star Jimmi Harkishin, and the husband-wife duo of Sanjeev Bhaskar and Meera Syal, stars of the award winning BBC comedy show The Kumars at No 42.
Syal said, "I was watching the performance and thinking this is the place where the head of state has sat and received people. And in this hallowed space you've got a group of Bhangra dancers, this is amazing, this is progress."
With President Pratibha Patil scheduled to visit Britain later this month, there is considerable interest in the country. The last visit by an Indian President was in 1990 when President R Venkataraman, accompanied by his wife Janaki, came to London.
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