MUMBAI: The much anticipated New Year's Eve is just a few hours away. Clubs, restaurants, joints are gearing up for the day which brings them business and keeps them on their toes. But the fun is going to be different in different metros around India.
Mumbai will party till 4 am on 1 January 2010 - and is the most fortunate city in this respect. Bangloreans will have to stop at 1 am, while Pune and Delhi around 12:30 am - that makes Mumbai the best place to party on Thursday evening. The city that never sleeps will also be a destination which will party while it's awake.
Last year, most New Year party events got cancelled as an after effect of the 26/11 attacks. This year, people seem to have already started partying. "The party has already begun. We have had many guests visiting in the last two weeks compared to the last year - the response has been great," says Emmanuelle de Decker of Blue Frog - one of the most happening live music joints of Mumbai. The deadline this year for the clubs in Mumbai is 4 am. "We'll get the party started from 11 pm onwards," she says. The club has limited entries and close to 300 revelers are expected to watch a special act by French band No Jazz: Funk, trip hop, electro and DJ MONTY v/s DJ AJMAL.
When it comes to music, Bangalore is considered as one of the most happening places, but the southern cosmopolitan city will have to shut down at 1 am because the laws are not party friendly. Says Sanjay T, manager of Extreme Sports Bar, "The cops this time have become more gracious on New year's eve, otherwise on daily basis Bangalore shuts down at 11:30 pm," he says.
Most nightclub owners are not quite pleased with this as it affects their business in a big way, "Basically the difference is in the way we look at pop culture - night life has been associated with all kind of non-required things, so this is more of a safety measure," says Sanjay. Most clubs in Bangalore will start the partying from 7:30 pm as they have very little time after the calendar moves to 2010 at midnight
The scene in Pune and Delhi is also apathetic as restaurants and club will have to close down at 12:30 pm. "I have no problems in closing down the club at the given time," says an owner of a popular Delhi based club. It's assumed that Delhi being notorious for its crime rate will be under surveillance during New Year's Eve. Pune, the city with a large inflow of foreigners and student population, will also have to stick to the 12:30 am deadline. So, only Mumbai gets the privilege to party to the music till wee hours compared to any other metros!