One of the recent trends in the wedding industry in Montreal is cross-culture weddings. Canada is an immigrant society and the recent influx of South Asian immigrants is huge which obviously has resulted in a lot of desi weddings in Canada in a mixed cultural setting. According to a recent official report, more than 50% of new immigrants to Canada in 2019 are Indian, Punjabi and Pakistanis.

The second-gen immigrants have more integration opportunity having studied in the Canadian school system. Opposites attract and the consequence is cross-cultural marriages as more and more people find it amusing to explore different cultures.

I am a Dj in Montreal for the past six years and perform as an Indian Dj, Pakistani Dj and Punjabi Dj. In fact, we have done so many cross-cultural weddings that this has become our expertise.

Whilst a mix of culture is amazing in many contexts of a wedding like food, clothing and decor, there are certain elements that cannot be integrated together, easily. The best example is music.

As desis we may rock to the hip hop tunes of Chris Brown or Lady Gaga but the real action begins only when our desi beats hit the dance floor. Whilst you cannot expect a typical Hip Hop or EDM Dj to play good Indian music, the other way around is possible!

A Desi Dj is usually able to mix between the western and desi forms of music.

Cross-culture weddings

This is where an Indian Dj specializing in Bollywood and Pakistani Dj music will step in. Or a Punjabi Dj with his artillery of Bhangra Dj music will be able to rock the dance floor apart from keeping the western camp happy and occupied with tunes familiar to them.

When it comes to Desi Djs you will usually find yourself having to choose between a Pakistani Dj, Indian Dj or a Punjabi Dj. Most of these started off as a Wedding Dj and gradually diversified into the Corporate Events Dj world.

One thing common to any Desi Dj is Bollywood; all follow the same cinema no matter what part of the world they live in. In fact, Bollywood is considered to have a bigger viewership in the world than Hollywood!

However, it is also important to note that there is a world of difference between a typical Indian Dj, Pakistani Dj and a Punjabi Dj. The reason I point this out is that Punjabi Bhangra music is a beast in its own right. If you talk to a typical Punjabi Dj his definition of Bhangra music will be different than someone who is not acquainted well with that form of music.

All in all, it is strongly believed that the most important element at a wedding apart from food is music. Be smart, make your choice wisely for a wedding Dj and enjoy!

The author is a Dj operating in Montreal as DjD and specializes in the Fuzion form of music. Hip Hop, Rap, Reggae, EDM, Bollywood, Indian, Pakistani, Punjabi and Bhangra music is their forte. They also perform as Corporate Dj & Private Party Dj and you can click on the hyperlinks to see videos.