A Look Into Veerhood

This post is about a brand that I really connected with, Veerhood. I first found out about Veerhood on Twitter and Instagram and learned more about them through my friend DJ Reminisce who attended the launch event. Thanks to Reminisce I was able to connect with the founder of Veerhood, Baljit. During our conversations over the phone I could instantly see how much passion he has for this brand and what is stands for. Not only is the apparel stylish and unique, but each piece has an amazing message behind it.

Veerhood was founded earlier this year in Vancouver. Despite being a fairly new brand, it's gained the attention of Punjabis all over North America and the world! When asked how he came up with the name Veerhood, Baljit told me that the translation is a “relationship between brothers- the symbolism, however extends to a community of people, both men and women, linked by common interests. For us, it's cultural awareness and self-discovery." This brand's apparel is meant to connect members of the Punjabi community as well as educate and highlight important facts about our roots, culture and traditions.

"Our apparel helps to draw the connection of Panjab as the homeland, our roots, and to feel a spiritual and familial connection among global Panjabis. It's taught us to be proud of who we are. Essentially, we are aspiring to preserve our heritage and provide expanded narratives of our history, a narrative that we don't find in most history books."

What I personally love the most about Veerhood is the post cards that come with each shirt. Each card explains the meaning of the message on each shirt the customer has purchased that encourages conversation and includes important facts that one may not have known otherwise. "We want to help generations harness their identity and roots proudly. But more than that, we want to help spread Panjabi history and tradition to a new, more mainstream generation of global Panjabis."

Now I had to ask Baljit how he got the inspiration for this brand. He was born in Canada after his parents moved there for a better life. They did their best to ensure that he was still connected to his roots while he was growing up. Fast forward to present day- Baljit has two daughters. " I see what they are exposed to in school, with their friends and the ever so influential social media. That was the trigger for me around what are my girls taking away or learning about our Panjabi culture. It wasn't until my adult years where I was curious about our culture and the richness that it holds. So I put those two together and thought, how can I share our culture and rich Panjabi culture with our younger generation now.  I am a professional and have a daytime job, but this is important to me and I feel that our generation of Panjabis needs to collaborate and work together to keep our culture alive for the generations to come."

“Baljit says that his brand has been receiving great feedback from the older and younger generations alike. The emphasis is identifying that the things/heroes that you see in mainstream culture, we as Panjabis have our own version of it. For example, we have our very own Incredible Hulk, Baba Deep Singh Ji. The kids usually respond with whoa, no way! The importance is in the story-telling and not lecturing. Hence, the whole concept of using apparel to share messages about our culture.”

Since Veerhood isn’t even a year old yet, I asked Baljit where he sees Veerhood 5 years down the line.  Where do you see Veerhood in 5 years?

“Great question! We would like to see Veerhood a part of mainstream and synonymous with story-telling and Panjabi culture. It will give people reason to want to know more, be intrigued and want to seek out more knowledge. At the same time, bringing the community together by embracing our emphasis on 'we are ek.' We all strive to be the best but not at the expense of putting someone down. WE need to celebrate everyone's successes on their own merits and from supporting each other.”

For those of you wondering about the quality of Veerhood's apparel, I'm speaking from experience when I say their high quality fabric helps to give the most perfect and comfortable fit without feeling tight at all! The fabric is so soft I would honestly sleep in these shirts if the designs weren't so cool! They also donate $1 from each garment produced to the Seva Foodbank in Ontario, Canada and award a scholarship to one lucky high school senior in B.C. who has proudly exemplified promoting culture and wanting to spread the word while maintaining good grades. With all of the inspirational and things Veerhood does and hopes to do in the future, I felt I should share this amazing brand with all of my readers! As I always say, I’m always looking for positive influences and role models in our community,, so when I came across Veerhood I just HAD to let you know!

My favorites from Veerhood: Beats and Traditions, We are 1, and K.  Be sure to check out their podcast, VeerRadio on SoundCloud as well! If you want to check out the website and purchase a shirt yourself you can go to Veerhood.com!