Exercise to Punjabi music: a whitepaper for partners
Why it matters in the UK, how Pungra helps more South Asians, especially women, become regularly active, and the projects we would lead with you.
Whitepaper for partners
Exercise to Punjabi music: why it matters and what we can do together
Pungra is exercise set to Punjabi music, without an audience. It is a fitness class with no routine to learn, run in London since 2012 and rated 4.8 out of 5 from 53 reviews on Trustpilot.
This paper is for organisations that want more South Asian people, and especially South Asian women, to be regularly physically active. It sets out the need, what Pungra does differently, and the projects we would like to lead with partners.
How to use this page. Choose who you are at the top to see what is most relevant to you. Use the arrow keys or the buttons to move through, try the calculators, or choose “Show as one page”.
The need
South Asian adults are less likely to be active, and the gap is widest for women
The UK Chief Medical Officers’ guideline for adults is at least 150 minutes of moderate activity a week, or 75 minutes of vigorous activity. In England, adults of Asian ethnicity are less likely to meet it than adults overall.
Active adults in England, November 2024-25 (%)
The same survey, earlier split by ethnicity and sex (2017/18, %)
Sources: Sport England Active Lives Adult Survey 2024-25 (active means 150 or more minutes a week); Race Disparity Unit, Active Lives 2017/18. The 2024-25 headlines do not split Asian adults by sex, so the 2017/18 split is the most recent we cite. “Asian” here is the survey’s group, which includes South Asian ethnic groups. Sample sizes are smaller for minority groups.
Why it matters
The health stakes are higher
Regular activity helps prevent type 2 diabetes and heart disease. Both affect South Asian communities earlier and more often.
The British Heart Foundation also reports that first-generation South Asians living in the UK have a higher rate of coronary heart disease than White Europeans.
Physical activity does not remove genetic risk. It is one of the most accessible things people can do to reduce the chance and the severity of these conditions, which is why starting early matters.
The barriers
Why people do not take part, and what research says works
Research with Asian communities (Sporting Equals, 2013, London and Bradford) is qualitative, and cautions that one size does not fit all. Its findings are consistent, though, and they shape how Pungra is designed.
| Barrier raised in the research | What helps, according to the research | How Pungra is designed |
|---|---|---|
| Sport seen as a male activity; families uneasy about clubs and male-dominated settings. | Familiar, informal places such as faith and community centres; female-only sessions. | Fitness, not sport or performance. Can run in community and faith venues, with women-only sessions where wanted. |
| Modesty, dress and privacy (cameras, visible windows, changing areas). | Allow traditional dress; protect privacy; female coaches where preferred. | Everyday exercise clothing. Filming only with knowledge and consent; instructor training covers privacy and safeguarding. |
| Household and childcare demands; limited time. | Flexible timing, including mid-morning to early afternoon; family-friendly options. | Sessions timed with the host. Recommended for ages 6 to 66. Free videos to use at home. |
| Confidence, not knowing where to go, cost. | Taster sessions, clear information, subsidised rates, group attendance. | No routine to learn, join any week, £4 a class or £6 for two (reviewed every three months). |
| Messages that do not reach people. | Trusted messengers (GPs, teachers, community leaders), community media, health framing over competition. | Partner signposting, and health-first messaging. |
What we do differently
The Pungra approach
Pungra is a workout set to Punjabi music, designed for the person taking part and not for an audience. Bhangra is the music and the heritage; the aim is a workout people enjoy enough to keep doing.
Fitness first
One structured hour: warm-up, main section to Punjabi music, and cool-down with stretching.
Familiar music
Our hypothesis, which a pilot can test: music people already love lowers the feeling that “exercise is not for people like me”.
Safe and screened
A short health screening when joining, with advice to check with a doctor first where needed.
Learn and certify
Free courses on dance-fitness and Punjabi music, plus continuing professional development for instructors who hold Exercise To Music Level 2.
Evidence status. Pungra has strong participant feedback but has not yet run an independently evaluated programme. That is exactly what we are seeking partners for, and why this paper proposes measurement from day one.
Interactive
Try the numbers
How far does one class go towards the guideline?
Guideline arithmetic: vigorous minutes count double towards the 150 moderate-equivalent minutes. This is not a claim about any person’s intensity.
Plan a pilot
Illustrative arithmetic only (sessions × attendance × weeks). It is not a forecast; real attendance is one of the things a pilot measures.
Fit with your priorities
How Pungra projects can meet your aims
Choose your sector above. Each table maps your published priorities to what a Pungra project would do and how we would measure it.
Health charities
Diabetes UK, British Heart Foundation, Cancer Research UK and similar
Your published priorities include preventing avoidable illness and reaching people at higher risk. For South Asian communities, type 2 diabetes and heart disease are the clearest examples.
| Your aim | How a Pungra project helps | What we would measure |
|---|---|---|
| Reach communities at higher risk of type 2 diabetes and heart disease with practical, enjoyable prevention. | A weekly hour of activity people choose to keep doing, in a format that does not ask anyone to be sporty. Your risk-awareness material can be shared in class and in the Pungra Chat. | Number of people attending, how many were previously inactive, repeat attendance after 12 weeks. |
| Move from awareness to behaviour change. | Regular activity is a habit, and a class with friends builds habits better than a leaflet. Short, repeatable sessions: one hour, no routine to learn, join any week. | Self-reported weekly minutes at the start and after 12 weeks, using the national guideline as the yardstick. |
| Trusted, culturally relevant messengers. | Co-branded sessions where your information is delivered alongside music and movement people already know, with community voices rather than only clinicians. | Reach by community, feedback on how relevant the information felt. |
Charity pilot idea: a 12-week “Move for your heart / Move for your sugar levels” series, with your risk information built into the sessions and a simple before-and-after check-in.
Faith and community institutions
Gurdwaras, Mandirs, Churches, Mosques and community halls
Research with Asian communities finds that familiar, informal places such as faith centres and community centres are more appealing than formal clubs, and that respected community figures can encourage people to take part.
| Your aim | How a Pungra project helps | What we would measure |
|---|---|---|
| Support the wellbeing of your congregation and community, including women and older people. | A class that can run in your hall at a time that suits your community. Women-only sessions, led by a female instructor, can be designed where wanted. | Attendance, repeat attendance, and the congregation’s own feedback on whether the session felt welcome. |
| Keep activity respectful of faith, modesty and privacy. | Everyday clothing is fine, no performance and no audience. Filming and photos are only ever with people’s knowledge and consent, and instructor training covers privacy and safeguarding. | Whether anyone felt uncomfortable: a simple anonymous check at the end of each block. |
| Strengthen community, not only fitness. | Sessions with family-friendly elements (the class is recommended for ages 6 to 66, with parents and guardians responsible for their children) and a private, first-names-only Pungra Chat for people who attend. | Number of first-time visitors to your premises, new volunteers and local friendships formed (self-reported). |
Faith pilot idea: a trial block of weekly sessions in your hall, agreed with your committee, with a trusted community member co-hosting and welcoming newcomers.
Government and public bodies
NHS, Department of Health and Social Care, public health teams, medical organisations
The NHS 10 Year Health Plan sets out a shift from treatment to prevention. Physical activity is one of the most direct preventive tools, and it needs to reach the communities where inactivity is highest.
| Your aim | How a Pungra project helps | What we would measure |
|---|---|---|
| Prevention: help more adults reach the Chief Medical Officers’ activity guidelines. | The guideline is 150 minutes of moderate activity a week or 75 minutes of vigorous activity, or an equivalent mix. A single weekly hour is a meaningful step towards it, especially for people starting from nothing. | Share of attendees moving from below to at or above guideline minutes, using the same measures as national surveys. |
| Reduce ethnic health inequalities. | A targeted offer for communities with higher risk and lower activity. Open to everyone, designed for people who have felt activity was not for them. | Reach and retention by ethnicity and sex, shared with you in anonymised form. |
| Work with clinicians, not instead of them. | Pungra does not replace clinical care. Joining includes a short health screening, and people with a condition are asked to check with their doctor first. GP practices, pharmacies and health visitors can signpost to sessions. | Referral and signposting sources, health-screening outcomes, any adverse events (target: none). |
Public-sector pilot idea: a signposted local programme with a named clinical or public-health lead, anonymised outcome reporting, and an independent evaluation partner.
Sport and fitness organisations
CIMSPA, EMD UK, Active IQ, Sport England, Sport Scotland, Sport Wales, Sport Northern Ireland, Active Partnerships (for example Greater Manchester, Active Essex, Active Surrey, Active Kent and Medway, Active Oxfordshire, Sport Birmingham, Active Black Country, Think Active, Active Norfolk, Leap) and similar
Sport England’s Uniting the Movement strategy states that “for too long, people with the most to gain from being active have been the least able to take part”, and names ethnicity among the inequalities to tackle. Its five big issues are recover and reinvent, connecting communities, positive experiences for children and young people, connecting with health and wellbeing, and active environments.
| Your aim | How a Pungra project helps | What we would measure |
|---|---|---|
| Connecting communities. | Community-based sessions that bring people together around music they already know, run in local halls, schools and faith centres. | Attendance, repeat attendance, number of venues and partner organisations involved. |
| Connecting with health and wellbeing. | A weekly hour that supports physical and mental wellbeing, with a short health screening and clear guidance for people with health conditions. | Self-reported wellbeing and weekly activity minutes at the start and after 12 weeks. |
| Tackling inequality in who takes part. | Aimed first at South Asian adults, especially women, who national data show are less likely to be active. Open to everyone. | Reach and retention by ethnicity and sex, and the share who were previously inactive. |
| Workforce and quality. | Pungra Course 3 is continuing professional development for instructors who already hold Exercise To Music Level 2. Its Pungra instructor certification is currently undergoing endorsement, and we welcome a conversation with qualification and standards bodies about recognition and quality. | Number of instructors trained, assessment results, learner feedback. |
Sport pilot idea: a funded place-based pilot with your Active Partnership or national body: trained local instructors, community venues, and shared evaluation against your outcomes framework.
This is based on national strategies and published statements, not on each organisation’s funding criteria, which differ and change. We would map your exact criteria with you before any proposal.
Proposals
Projects Pungra would lead
These are proposals for partners, not results to date. Each can be scaled up or down.
Community hall pilot
A 12-week block in a faith centre, community hall or school, one session a week, with taster, regular and women-only options. Agreed with the host and a local partner.
Instructor pathway
Local people trained as instructors through the free Pungra courses, so a pilot can keep going after funding ends. Course 3 is for instructors with Exercise To Music Level 2.
Exercise at home
Free workout videos on YouTube that people can cast to a TV, so the whole household can take part, including people who cannot get to a venue yet.
Pungra Chat
An optional, private space for people who attend class. Members see only first names and an optional photo. Nobody sees phone numbers or email addresses. It helps people keep going between sessions.
Independent evaluation
A simple, shared measurement plan from day one, so partners see what changed. We would welcome an academic or evaluation partner.
Your starting point
Charity pilot idea: a 12-week “Move for your heart / Move for your sugar levels” series, with your risk information built into the sessions and a simple before-and-after check-in.
Faith pilot idea: a trial block of weekly sessions in your hall, agreed with your committee, with a trusted community member co-hosting and welcoming newcomers.
Public-sector pilot idea: a signposted local programme with a named clinical or public-health lead, anonymised outcome reporting, and an independent evaluation partner.
Sport pilot idea: a funded place-based pilot with your Active Partnership or national body: trained local instructors, community venues, and shared evaluation against your outcomes framework.
Accountability
How we would measure and keep people safe
Measures from day one
Attendance and repeat attendance; share previously inactive; self-reported weekly activity minutes at the start and after 12 weeks; wellbeing; and participant feedback. Reported by ethnicity and sex in anonymised form.
Privacy
People’s contact details are not shared with other members. Photos and videos are shared only with people’s knowledge, and people can say no.
Safety
Short health screening at joining, warm-up and cool-down in every session, and doctors consulted where there is a health condition.
Safeguarding
Parents and guardians supervise children. Instructor training covers filming, privacy and safeguarding. A safeguarding policy and DBS arrangements should be agreed with each partner before delivery begins.
Next step
Partner with Pungra
Tell us your priorities and we will come back with a short, costed proposal that maps to your criteria and measures.
Email Pungra about a partnership Come to a class first
Sources and notes
- Sport England, Active Lives Adult Survey November 2024-25 headlines (published April 2026)
- Race Disparity Unit, Physical activity (Active Lives 2017/18, published 31 January 2019)
- Sport England, Ethnicity research page
- Diabetes UK, Ten years of discoveries shaped by British Bangladeshi and British Pakistani communities (23 March 2026)
- British Heart Foundation, Ethnicity and heart disease
- Sporting Equals, Culturally Excluded: engaging Asian communities in sport (2013 research in London and Bradford)
- Sport England, Uniting the Movement
- NHS, Physical activity guidelines for adults aged 19 to 64
- GOV.UK, 10 Year Health Plan for England: fit for the future
Last reviewed 7 November 2026. Figures are quoted from the sources above; please check the originals before relying on them in a funding bid. Pungra is not a medical service and this paper is not medical advice.