Mandeep Kaur –
The lights of Diwali glow red and blue when dancing Police Officers took to the stage last month in Auckland.
The New Zealand Police cultural group were among the line-up at the annual Auckland Diwali Festival held on Sunday, October 18 at Aotea Centre.
The seven-strong group presented in full uniform the ever-popular Bhangra, a traditional folk dance accompanied by a drum.
The group was practising for six weeks in the lead-up to the festival.
Visitors to Diwali expected and experienced a high energy performance.
It is a happy, loud music. with a live drum beat going on. You would not have realised how hyped you were when you are performing.
The origin
Bhangra originates from the Punjab region, which is now part of both India and Pakistan.
Most members of the police group, which incorporates officers of both Punjabi and Gujarati descent, grew up dancing Bhangra.
It is like Maori with the haka; they take pride in it. It can be quite emotional for us.
The group’s first performance was at the Vaisakhi Festival in Manukau in April. It has also performed at an ethnic hui celebrating police diversity.
Tens of thousands of Aucklanders attended Diwali 2015 and it was the group’s biggest audience since it began performing.
We thank the community for their support.
Rising Asians
Asian people comprise 9.3% of the New Zealand population and 23.1% of Aucklanders identify with one or more Asian ethnic groups.
There are 102 police employees who identify as Indian throughout New Zealand.
Last year, 5% of police recruits were of Asian descent and the police are making an ongoing effort to encourage more recruits of diverse backgrounds. It is important for members of ethnic communities to see themselves represented by the police.
The dance not only celebrates the diversity of the police staff taking part but also gives us a platform to interact with communities at a different level.
People can see that the police speak like them, look like them, dance like them.
Mandeep Kaur is Acting Sergeant and Ethnic Coordinator at Counties Manukau Police.
Photo Caption:
The Police Bhangra Group at Aotea Centre, Auckland on October 18
