Dressed in a traditional Punjabi folk outfit – a kurta-chadra (kurta and long loincloth) and dastar (turban), the oldest outfit of undivided Punjab, with a pair of Air Jordans and neon yellow gloves — Punjabi popstar Diljit Dosanjh brought out all the stops at last year’s Coachella Valley Music and Arts Festival – a significant cultural space that influences music, fashion and popular culture all over the world. The headliners at the premier festival in Palm Springs in the past have included noted names such as Beyonce, Prince, Radiohead and Rage Against the Machine, among others, while the job is with Lady Gaga in 2025.
“Punjabi aa gaye Coachella oye (Punjabis are here in Coachella),” announced Dosanjh upon arrival on the popular world stage. Those present, with limbs pounding and hearts racing, screamed their lungs out in acknowledgement. Dosanjh obliged, stuck to the basics of his music — traditional folk with a contemporary twist — and went on to perform an entirely Punjabi set at a festival with a mostly English-speaking audience as well as bands that performed in English. And just as his song Patiala Peg came on and the party became wild with the beats of the dhol, bhangra was the order of the day, including some steps from Grammy-winning American DJ Diplo, who was at the concert. It was the first time any Indian musician had made it to Coachella with two performances at the double weekender. Interestingly, Vancouver-based Punjabi singer AP Dhillon also performed at the same festival after Dosanjh.
Two Punjabi artistes at Coachella, where no Indian had ever managed to set foot before despite the popularity of a variety of Indian music all over the world, was a watershed moment for Punjabi pop, which found itself at one of the most significant music festivals in the world through two Punjabi artistes. “It was so fantastic to see our people, so many of them, so far away, here in Los Angeles. It felt surreal,” says Dosanjh in a short clip made by his team following the festival.
