Oct 30, 2006 12:20 AM
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There's one constant in the qualities working women insist their kind of place (to hang out) needs to possess-no men. Actually, there are three degrees to this misanthropy.
The first has to do with the physical characteristics of the place itself: at a discotheque, for instance, or in a pub that boasts a dance floor single men consider it required of them to pester single women for dances; when women want to be left alone, they almost always seem to prefer places that do not have a dance floor.
The second has to do with the kind of men who populate a place. Delhi's Ego, Olive, Geoffrey's and Rick's score because they do not seem to have found favour with the brawny crowd that throngs most other pubs in the city.
That's where Sunita Kumar, a 29-year-old software professional heads with her friends when she wants some time to herself (away from husband and three-year-old daughter). ''You can enjoy your drink, nibble at your food, and dance the evening away,'' she grins. ''We have a clique that's really into karaoke, so the places we head to are Merlin's Bar or Soul Fry or Not Just Jazz By The Bay,'' says Maheep Dhillon, a Mumbai-based director of television shows.
Kolkata's Conclave (a club promoted by Harsh Neotia of Bengal Ambuja) has a section called Whatchamacallit where women make up more than 90 per cent of the members. Hanging out doesn't always have to do with music, liquor, and dancing.
At the Nail Bar, in downtown Mumbai, Rs 2,000 will get you a nail extension with nail art thrown in, while you sip a coffee, soda, or coconut water, and there are enough women who shell out that kind of money on an hour snatched from work.
If that sounds boring, try this: for a bit of risqué fun, working girls in Mumbai get together, identify a venue, raise Rs 10,000 and hire a male stripper.
