No doubt India has other issues as a country than entertaining some spoilt brats-expats. However, what has happened in Bangalore over the last say eight months is somehow a nightmare. The nightlife in the city used to be cool, two or three places one could go to, open till 2 to 2.30 am, good crowd, not a great variety, but nothing to complain either.
Yet, since the new government has come into power, things changed 180 degrees. With a new commissioner of police in charge, the ancient rule (since the British left?) is being imposed with utmost rigor: curfew at 11.30 pm, no minute longer, over and out. This means that in most places last order at 11.00 pm, and at 11.30 pm light-on and off you go. I have experienced even quite often policemen coming straight into the bar, with white helmets on their heads and wooden sticks chasing the guests out on the street like cattle. How sick is that.
Obviously, such a framework is not really too inviting and basically two things have happened: First, the overall amount of people going out in Bangalore has dropped. At the same time a few audacious entrepreneurs have opened a few new venues with the effect that the smaller audience gets distributed across more places. One can imagine how empty these places get and in an attack of desperation you start barhopping from one deserted place to the next. Today going out with my friend German Christian went like that: Taika (dead) to Tuscon Verve (hip-hop night with some Indian kiddies who pretend to be wannabe gangsta-rappers, well …) to Spinn (dead) to iBar (rotting already) to finally Sparks (didn’t let us in at 11.00 because it had “closed”). That’s quite unsmart – to quote the old platitude which yet holds true – in the city which likes to be called “The Silicon Valley of Asia”.
Contemplating on my favorite issue of “what is truth”, inferring that a Western lifestyle with going out to discos is the universal way to lead a proper life, is certainly a dull argument. However, trying to find an adequate grip on the grounds of Indian common values, then such a strangulating interference into people’s lives is not something which Indians usually like so much. Especially, if it cuts into freedoms which have been enjoyed quite unquestioned beforehand. So it’s rather the dynamics to the worse which I find particularly disturbing. But I know, with or with my disturbance, India will move on unimpressed ;-)
But, in the bottom line, here and today: Nightlife in Bangalore is dead as dead can be. Hoping for the next life in a hopefully vivid reincarnation.
Feeds
Hmmm, doesn’t sound so good!
You now have no choice but to “sleep, sleep!”
:-))
As WE indians say “hai, hai, hai” poor thing….
your content in your blog has certainly evolved from “her eyes were hungy, very very hungy”
to where have the animals all gone :-)
Returning back to CH recovering from not jetlag but lack of sleep.
MUMBAI is the Metropol that never sleeps, and it just happens that you suddenly find yourself amongst the Mumbaiites being let in to a party where laptops are used for the guest list and the decadence is unbearable, food from the Taj people flying in from all corners of the world, helicopters parked on the lawn.
What struck me was not that they were all incredibly beautiful, men too but also incredibly fit (a rarity in India).
I chatted to a producer who was filling me in about who is who, explaining about his photo shoot this morning planned for 9am (it was 4am) and how noone ever turns up and this partying is killing the industry because they need to work with natural light :-)
Another guy Harsh who owns Kaya Clinic ( has just signed Christine Turlington for his Ayuverdic products) Arjuna his wife were both persistent i come visit their clinic the next day and pointed out who had had what done in the crowd, this was getting all to weird, anyway I did turn up the next day out of sheer curiosity, they tested my skin and said it shows the texture of 29-34 year-old and Botox could improve it to look much younger at which point i GULPED and ran out and never want to see them again.
From the party friday night i was asked to join a brunch Saturday, then this went onto a Ravi Shankar concert (at which point i nearly fell asleep) I was hoping my driver was going to take me home but NO he had been instructed to drop me off at another party where i was intro. As this Swiss/Indian poor thing all alone in Mumbai and needs to be looked after (indian chivalry) the party was an annual couples dinner, may i say more i was finally happy to be in an environment with no pumping loud music and one could talk although the men were trying hard not to give me too much attention.
The next morning was a brunch AGAIN and all i wanted to do was lie on the poolside and sleep. The topic was a suicide of an actress which is rapidly increasing, Vikrams statement to this was how the hell could she tie a knot.
My farewell early dinner Sunday, of which i begged to skip as i was not hungry and soooo tired turned out to be at a friends hause on his lawn with caterers making pani puri (a dish foreigners can’t eat on the street and is delicious) and an assortment of indian sweets kulfi. And once again a party with his closest freinds.
Vikram who has just purchased and is renovating his new home has also just recently purchased the rest of the land on the beach so that no squatters can set up home near his palace, i naively asked what he will do with all this land, his reply “jogging track, and heli pad”.
The moral of this story is Rene hangs out in the wrong city or maybe even right place, as i don’t believe anyone can get anything done at this tempo….
And i am relieved to be back with my farmers in my little Kanton :-)
Viva Schweiz
3 Days of Bombay-Conference: Flat World in the Essence
Today has been – what I totally dislike – hectic with doing too many things at the same time. It reminds me of Dostoyevski’s proverb: “Who hunts too many rabbits at the same time, will not catch a single one.”…
Anju, your comments are hillarious. Lovely tales of Indian A list socialites…
Much different from my mere existence as a stay-at-home-mum. Oh, did I say the word “mere”?
Shallow me;-)
Nice to meet you, albeit an odd space to meet.
Echo you re: comments about René “hungry eyes” to “animals”. A positive evolution indeed;-)
Kisses for René.
Hi Nina,
welcome to the fraternity of Rene’s “GIRL” friends…
we have evolved from his “chicks”
weird finally meeting you on this virtual platform.
At least we add spice to his somewhat dry content :-)
“Motherhood” enjoy all the phases, its not just a “mere” task but a beautiful role we women are fortunate to have.
Rene, can we have a section please for multitasking mums :-)
till the next anecdote..