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The Culture and Visual Representation of Bhands in Punjab (An Analysis of Their
Living Standard and Class)

Article · May 2021

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The Culture and Visual Representation of Bhands in Punjab

(An Analysis of Their Living Standard and Class)

ROHAIL RAHAT
M. Phil Student, Institute of Art and Design,
Government College University, Faisalabad, Pakistan.

SAIRA SIDDIQUI
Assistant Professor, Department of Sociology,
Government College University, Faisalabad, Pakistan.

NABEELA FARAH
Assistant Professor (visiting), Department of Sociology,
Government College University, Faisalabad, Pakistan;
Email: donia.nabeela@yahoo.com

Abstract
This paper is an exploration of the culture and visual representation of bhands in Faisalabad. The cardinal
focus of this article is to investigate the cultural traditional folk entertainer bhands and their class through
the critical analysis of the local performers folk singers, dancer, and comic activist in Pakistan. The
physically appearance of bhand and their props were analyzed and interpreted while taking into account
the correlation of bhand folk culture with the demonstration of class in the society. This article depicts the
Punjabi culture of the local performers and their profession in society the nature of this article can be
understood within the realms of local performing arts. The bhands and their local performance on
weddings in Faisalabad represents various kinds of hidden social as well as cultural patterns of their life
style in which the element of class is a great significance. The study further highlights the ways in which
bhand community survive and earn with performance. The bhand practices, heritage and historical settings
play a key role in our culture and social associations. This study examined that in present times people with
changing culture don’t invite bhands on their weddings, due to poor living standards and lack of attention
they are changing their profession. It’s a big loss of our old cultural practices and heritage. So it is
necessary to highlight their living standards and to evaluate their challenges in modern era. This
community is need for financial and cultural support. For this purpose, the local government should
provide them the academies and theaters on reviving the traditional folk.

Keywords: Culture, Art, Tradition, Bhand, Critical Analysis, Punjab.

Introduction
According to historical background Bhand word came from the Hindi word bhanda (buffooning), Bhands
are the local performers folk singers, dancer, and comic activist in Pakistan. They were employed as
entertainers and musicians in historical background. They are also common in other three countries India
Nepal and Bangladesh. They have (a leader) which is the senior most person of the group. In bhands the
most common character can be admire as an Ustand (leader) and jamurah/shagird/chota (student) most of
the bhands are living with their families. The females of their family are seems local wedding dancers and a
Garvi singers. Garvi is the vase which they used as a musical instrument. Their Females always wear a
heavy silver ring in the middle finger of the right hand and in the second hand they hold the garvi, with the
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help of the silver ring they play garvi sing songs and perform light dance steps. They usually sing Punjabi
folk songs mostly they sing sehra (a Punjabi folk wedding song full of successful prayers for the wedding
couple, their siblings and parents) on weddings. Some of the male bhands convert their self in a character
for performance. In the performance they perform a short comic funny play, in which sometimes they rise
the hot political issues in comic sense and insult the politicians which they unlike most. Their performance
consists of two or three persons. In them one of a main character holds a big size tong holding in his hand
for the background music. A set of very rough sandals or plastic softy seems to wear in their feet. Female
bhands are mostly wear to use bright colors tight costume fully fitted with the body. In jewelry the wear
gulu band in neck, bangles in the hands, and big a nose ring both sides in their nostrils. They pierced their
fully spaces of ears. They perform around all the audience for collecting money. By profession they all are
local singers juggat baz and comic activist. They earn from people by laugh and amuse them on the
weddings, parties and on birth of a new born baby.

Literature Review
This section of the article is associated to physical appearance of bhands in Punjab, their culture and their
living standard coupled with the conceptual framework in terms of theoretical dimensions. Khalid (2017)
explored the difference between Punjabi and Kashmiri bhand community. He explained that Kashmiri
bhands are similar to the local bhands of Punjab but the Kashmiri bhands mostly perform on the fairs of
Sufi saints. They also belong to poor class. Their instruments of music are somehow change they use
surani, dhol and nagaara but in comparative to local bhands they use chamoota with dholki. He also
investigated that bhand is a community those who performers live. They travel from place to place with
their stock and repertoire to perform at a temple or a Sufi shrine. Bal (2017) investigated about the
characteristic of a Bhand. She explored bhand Pather might be said to reflect a performance tradition in
which the lines between insiders and outsiders are clearly drawn. Gibson (2010) explained that social
dimensions of distinction presented a working-class way of life that was hard, involving sometimes
grueling paid manual labor, especially for men, and domestic drudgery and financial anxiety for women,
but which was nevertheless rewarding in its camaraderie at work, neighborliness and cooperation in
residential communities and its collective sense of dignity and independence. Kaur (2020) claims that
previously, women were not allowed in the performance, but with the passing of time things changed and
scope of women participation increased. women of bhands are locally dancers they perform dance on
weddings, but the bhands only make laugh to the audience by their comic plays, performance and singings.
In the past in bhand community only the male’s characters were dominant. Bennett (2009) explored that
bhand belongs to a very lower class. They are working class in our society. Bhnad male and female both
work together in the past only the male were performers and they sing song but with the passing of time
female bhands also introduce their self as a local dancers and financial support their families, they dance
and sing on weddings and entertain audience and people give them money. Taj (2019) explored that
bhands, in their improvisations, require audiences to play along and perform according to their social status
through generous offerings in order to save themselves from the embarrassment of further jokes at their
expense. Burgoyne (2018) explained that bhand entertain their audience by comic plays they play according
to the people taste and their social status. Furthermore, jokes are the main part of their theater. The audience
infers these qualities from the actor’s body language, facial expression, vocal inflection, and other
observable behavioral cues. To accomplish this behavioral specificity, the actor probes both the dialogue
and his or her own psyche for clues to the play’s deep meaning, a process that can either be intuitive or the
result of detailed analysis.

Research Methodology
In terms of its nature, the data collected and analyzed, purely on the basis of qualitative research. For data
collection, the researcher visited different places, mostly nearby villages, and asked the bhand people about
their living standard and also analyzed their physical appearance. At some points, the researcher visited the
(6) bhands’ homes personally to see and observe their living standard. Furthermore, the collected data were

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interpreted theoretically and analyzed on the basis of photographic evidences and written records. The point
of views of the bhands regarding the significance of the performance and living standards were taken into
account to interpret the data effectively.

Analysis and Discussion

The fundamental differences among lower, middle and upper class people can be found through the
analysis of their living standards. Their living representation can help to justify about their actual presence
in a society. People who belong to various classes possess different professions which reflect their beliefs,
cultural values and practices. These cultural practices are the part of economic wellbeing of many. The
present study explored that now-a-days how a local art diminishing and affecting their way of living. These
people with extreme talents needs their recognition but they are gradually fading due to poor living
standards and class.

Figure:1 Female bhands with children

The above mentioned picture shows the traditional as well as conventional life style of bhand people who
are mostly living in villages. On the marriage ceremony after lunch the band female local dancers and male
seated in the form of a group. Here is one of a group of females having their food. The youngster can also
see in the photo. Actually there is a reason the bhand people cannot have their food with the wedding guests
because they consider a very low class in Punjab. After done the lunch/dinner all the left food in plates by
guests almost the wasted food served to them in a vase. The female bhands are also bring their jhola (a
piece of cloth) with them after eating food the left food they pack in that cloth. Moreover, in the history
only male bhand were the performers and their women were only household by the time passing now bhand
women also perform.

Figure: 2, Male bhands

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In the above picture some of the main characters of bhands are sitting in a group outside the marquee, one
of the main instruments which is chamota can also see in the picture. The persons in this pictures raped
their head with a cloth to show off their characters. The plastic chapel which is showing the poor class
belongings of bhands is visible in the picture. Taj (2019) investigated about wedding bhand duo works with
minimalist props: the ranga carries the chammota (a leather slapstick) and the bighla often wears a scarf
over his shoulder. Equipped with genealogical references and keen observational skills, performers take on
any range of social, political and cultural references. According to the physical appearance they wear very
rough clothes their male persons mostly wear shalwar kameez and covered their heads with the turban of a
cloth.

Figure: 3, Ustad the leader bhand

In this figure the leader of bhands can be seen having the fifty rupees in his hand. The leader of bhand also
called Ustad, In Punjabi culture there are main two characters as one off ustad and second is jamurah, the
ustad is mostly seems above of forty age. He leads all the team members. The others team members obey
all the rules and regulations said by the leader, he gives instructions to all other members that how can they
do a successful event. He mostly not performs, he only instructs other, all group members collected cash
given by audience is the property of leader. Ustad (Chief) is responsible for the direction, music and play-
writing. The Bhand is the Rongdaar (Principle Conductor / Narrator), who carries on the performance with
his wit and alliterations, in association with the other performers.

Figure: 4, Bhands living style

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This photo is depicting the living standard of bhand in Punjab Pakistan. In actually they belong to the poor
class and their status in society is very low, their houses mostly consist on temporary camps called jhugi in
Punjabi and Urdu language. All the members of bhand go to any event mostly on local convince.
Community of bhands belongs to Muslim religion. They mostly live in form of small tribes some of them
are living in their one or two rooms type camps. In language they only use to speak and know Punjabi.
Bennnet (2009) explained that using a language of class to draw attention to its own superiority which
invites the possibility of contestation – the contemporary professional-executive class accepts its
advantages while refusing any clear class identity.

Conclusion
Now-a-days the bhand culture in Faisalabad is about to end. So many their sources on entertainment took
place of bhands. Bhands are the cultural folk entertainer in Pakistan, but advance culture ruins the bhands,
the bhand leaders are interested to convert their culture in their child but they are fail to do that because
technology influenced on everyday life. Bhand culture is fading day by day, only the few bhands can be
seen now on local weddings in Faisalabad. Mobile phones television and internet fading the cultural
activities, in the old time people source of entertainment were the live performances, singings skits show
and theater, by passing of time cinemas influenced the people and they go there for watching movie and for
entertain their selves. Study concluded that in this modern era the bhands have taken other professions they
don’t have any place to perform, people with present culture don’t invite them on their weddings. Due to
this the bhand community is changing their profession and it’s a big loss of our old culture heritage. Bhand
culture is our folklore and this tradition and bhand performances should be protect by providing them
platforms even in modern functions.

References
Bal, D.S. (2017). Bhand. A Folk-Form of Punjabi Theatre. Retrieved from: http://indiaich-
sna.org/pages/dastakbalsabha/report.pdf
Bennett, T., Savage, M., Silva, E. B., Warde, A., Gayo-Cal, M and Wright, D. (2009). Culture, Class,
Distinction. ISBN 9780415560771. Retrieved from: https://www.routledge.com/Culture-Class-
Distinction/Bennett-Savage-Silva-Warde-Gayo-Cal-Wright/p/book/9780415560771
Burgoyne, S. (2018). Creativity in Theatre: Theory and Action in Theatre/Drama Education. Springer.
ISSN, 2509-5781. Retrieved from: https://www.springer.com/gp/book/9783319789279
Gibson, L. (2010). Culture, Class, Distinction: Book review. Cultural Trends. 19(3) 245-248. Retrieved
from: https://doi.org/10.1080/09548963.2010.495280
Kaur, R. J. (2020). Negotiating Shame and Honour, Caste and Class: Women in Punjabi Theatre of East
Punjab. Dissertation: (Asian Studies). The university of British Columbia. Vancouver. Retrieved from:
https://open.library.ubc.ca/cIRcle/collections/ubctheses/24/items/1.0390290
Khalid, A. (2017). Censorship, Corruption and Surveillance in Art: A Case Study of Kashmiri Theatre.
Literary Herald. 3(4) 273-279. Retrieved from: http://tlhjournal.com/uploads/products/41.khalid-amin-
article.pdf
Taj, N. L. (2019). Comic Performance in Pakistan: The Bhand. Society and Culture in South Asia. 5(2)
375-377. Retrieved from: https://doi.org/10.1177%2F2393861719845191

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