Blow to Bangalore nightlife

Faced with a set of tough terms for securing licences for discotheques in this tech hub, entrepreneurs plan to meet the Commissioner of Police Shankar Bidari, reports BR Srikanth.

Faced with a set of tough terms for securing licences for discotheques in this tech hub, entrepreneurs plan to meet the Commissioner of Police Shankar Bidari and reason out that their joints ought not to be clubbed with sleazy “live bands” that were shut down three years ago.

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The new set of riders were handed over to the High Court during a hearing on “Live Bands” by Bidari on Monday (August 18th). They form a part of guidelines set by the city police for licence to open cabarets, discotheques and live band joints in the state capital. On receiving application with all documents listed by the Commissioner, the city police would invite objections and suggestions from the public through newspaper advertisements. The entire process of grant of licence would be completed within 36 days by all officers concerned, says the official memorandum handed over to Justice Shylendra Kumar.

However, the Association of Bars & Restaurants, pubs and hotels plans to draw Bidari’s attention to the fact that “verticals of entertainment” have not been defined. “We plan to explain that the process is not fair because there is no distinction between discos and live bands. It makes no difference as long as there is no distinction between different verticals. It is not fair to invite objections (from public) either. If these conditions are not reviewed, we will continue to live in dark ages,” Gina Braganza, owner of Opus, and spokesperson for the association said.