City by night, city's by right

City by night, city's by right
PRAKASH BELAWADI
The Hindu

The city must have a nightlife. And the khakhi force must defend the citizens' interest, rather than attack it



PARTY AND PRAY The city's roads are no longer safe to return home after a night of partying. It is the duty of the cops to keep the city alive not shut it down.

Now that we have a new police chief, we could ask yet again for time to play before being sent off to bed. The energetic young, the pub-hoppers and partying set would know for sure, but it does appear that policemen have stopped barging into the mellowest restaurants to scare away late-evening custom. Perhaps they were busy otherwise, for they were certainly looming large on the streets at the late hour, which could be just another way to send us all home early. They could be back at it anytime now. For a grown up city, we seem to have no clarity on policy here.

This is not about how moral it is for a society to permit girls to dance, or about harnessing money, time and energies of wasteful youth and converting them to nation-building, Honestly, that's outside the scope and ability of this column. If somebody wants to go to a bar to see young girls swaying to sick tunes, I want to look for other company. That's about it. If somebody wanted a conversation over a drink, that's another proposition altogether.

Late revellers

The first real question is how late in the evening is actually "late?" It is fair to say a cop's life in this city is pretty close to being the fate worse than the one you fear most. It surely isn't anybody's case that cops actually like to hang around late at night to poop their parties. It doesn't even make sense to say there is a protection racket here, not when the business itself is shut down in a legit establishment and good custom driven home. Bad custom will thrive as it is wont do into the wee hours in less hospitable joints. Which "late" is worrying to the cops? The late revellers around food shops at Visveshpuram or the usual suspects in illegal joints all over the city?

If the city police think tank has lost contact with Bangalore's time and space, here is one reality check: Basava, the honest citizen, does not leave work at 10 a.m. anymore. His work begins at 10 a.m. and if he leaves home by 8.30 a.m., he can avoid the worst peaks in traffic and reach his office in time. If Basava wants to go home to Kamala straight from work, it will take him a horrible two hours in the evening rush. If he and Kamala want to hang around with friends later, it will take at least another two hours before everybody can get together. So the evening actually begins only by 9 p.m. And just as the mood begins to mellow, the men who manage the city want them to go home. Oh, it is a very unpleasant experience to have busybodies in khakhi snatching away pleasure constructed with precious time, expense and effort. Whose "late" is it anyway?

And it really doesn't wash with anything when the cops claim this is all to reduce crime. Oh, please. The sight of tough-talking policemen yelling at two-wheeler riders eating idlis is just absurd. The idea of policemen doing crime control by barging into decent restaurants close to midnight is not just absurd, it is ugly. The truth is that the good citizens have no means of protesting against plain bad manners. The city managers are not answerable to the citizen. The top cop in the city is not elected by the citizen. Nor is the mayor. The worthies are appointed directly by the government of the day.

The second real question then: "Why are politicians against a nightlife in Bangalore? We all know, directly or otherwise, how possible is it to get a great nightlife in the city and restrictions be damned. A few of us know the less wholesome joints where custom is encouraged actively by policemen themselves. So, it is not the morality of it really, or the principle of the early hour. My personal view, admittedly pretty neurotic, is that the politician is jealous of hardworking people who can manage to have a good time.

The nightlife in any city is to be calibrated by its accessibility to the largest population groups. A throbbing nightlife in expensive bars in five-star establishments or hectic custom at illegal dhabas and dance bars are symptoms of disconnect and alienation. The city must be allowed to celebrate its nightlife on its streets, in the darshinis, the roadside omelette and dosa joints. This may come as a shocking idea to the police think tank, but cops who are out at that hour should in fact protect the right of Basava and Kamala to have a good time, help the revellers to secure transport and civilise illegal joints with legit competition.

Nobody is kidding anybody here. We know the government earns revenue from liquor sales. We know the bars and restaurants have been provided with licences to run their businesses. The government and boys in khakhi must get it into their heads that customers shell out hard-earned money in restaurants towards greedy sin taxes. They want to enjoy themselves, they have paid to be protected and they expect to be left in peace. We are asking the government and khakhi boys to get out and leave us alone. Don't call us, we'll call you. It makes sense.

prakash@cfdbangalore.ac.in