Eagle Era

Highlights from FUSD’s high school dance teams at BAAZI 2026

By Keerthi Vasudevan

Each year in March, dancers across the Bay Area gather at the Mexican Heritage Center for one of the biggest Bollywood competitions in California: BAAZI. Known for its high-energy performances by student dancers, BAAZI 2026 had its third show on March 7th. With a collision of tradition and modern fusion, San Jose State University’s (SJSU) Sahaara and AHS’s Nritya lit up the stage during their respective showcases. 

This year, Irvington HS’s Sitaare took home gold, winning the cash prize for their school for the first time ever. “Irvington really deserved the win because you could tell how much fun they had,” said Hrudya Namburu (9), who has attended BAAZI for 3 years. 

In addition to winning first place, Sitaare also won Best Costumes, and one of their dancers won Best Female Dancer. Aside from their enthusiasm, Sitaare’s classical portion and song selection secured the win for their team. 

Right behind them on the leaderboard was Mission San Jose HS’s Ishaara, who have made it to finals in all 3 of BAAZI’s seasons. Ishaara has consistently won 2nd place for the past 3 years and even won the award for Best Choreography this year. “I feel like Ishaara could have won first,” said Maddie Jin (10), a dancer on AHS’s Tufaan. 

Jin said, “Ishaara should have won first because their execution of hard choreography was so much better.”

Third place went to Foothill HS’s Fizaa, which took home a BAAZI trophy for the first time ever. One of their captains, Farhan Khan, also won the award for Best Male Lead.

Typically, all the awards are spread out so that at least 5 teams have different awards to take home. This year, all of them were given to the 3 teams that placed for the cash prizes.  

Each year, BAAZI showcases one special college team. This year, the exclusive showcase at BAAZI was from Saharaa, SJSU’s very own fusion Bollywood team. Many felt that this showcase was better than the previous years. “[Last year, UT Dallas’s Raftaar] literally started talking during their own dance,” said Namburu. “Saharaa was so much more fun to watch,” she added. 

In addition to AHS’s Tufaan, AHS’s Nritya also did a showcase at BAAZI. Though classical teams cannot officially place, BAAZI often holds showcases for bhangra and classical teams. This year, Nritya did a classical performance that blended several forms of traditional Indian dances such as Bharathanatyam and Kathak. The soundtrack mixed both classical beats and modern songs to create a fusion that brought lots of applause from the audience. 

The final half-hour was dedicated to the BAAZI Battle, a freestyle portion of the competition. All the teams gathered in a circle on stage and sent up 1-5 members to perform an impromptu dance to songs that the host chose. Wilcox HS’s Manzil, Irvington HS’s Sitaare, and Washington HS’s Taal dominated. 

In the end, BAAZI was more than just a competition; it was a celebration of Indian culture in the Bay Area—one that continues to inspire many high school students each year.