I am not one given to parties in the night club, pub or a dance bar... There is definitely a case for me to uphold morality here (always an effective cloak for shyness, two left feet and all related shortcomings..but that's another story). My ideal party is to gather friends, have a sumptous dinner in a hotel like the one on the highway in Navi Mumbai, have live ghazals, people enjoying the atmosphere which due to the late hour of the night (and also the artificial springs' effect) is nicely, cosily cold (I must mention Indian cold here! 20 odd degrees and nothing less) ... just nice and calm, friends, laughter and ... ohh well I am straying here ...
So, all in all, I am not a pub-hopper of this yippie generation - quite a misfit for many my age and definitely for those younger than me!
But, I happened to go to a office party just yesterday - a general year-end Christmas party and that was in a NIGHTCLUB! With bar, smoking, dancing et al!! So you might expect that and truly the case was that I was bored. But, not really... it was quite an experience for me ...
It started with us getting to drink whatever we wanted - making some friendly talks with colleagues and seniors, normal dinner and cheering each other. The president taking time to thanking all the employees for their contribution and stuff. Then the enthusiastic few (but not indeed great dancers - or at least still shy of dancing with colleagues!) started going to the dance floor to shake a leg as they were no more able to resist it - what with some pretty young execs from a dutch bank were also letting their hair down in the next room! Lets say that was contagious... But, the real fun or enlightenment was not with my colleagues; but indeed; with the people who had come to the nightclub on what was a weekday(!!!!) and their behaviour while they were at 'it' .. i mean partying..
Sample two examples ... There was this pretty American gal who came to the club and stayed pretty late. She had actually arrived with some cool dude (seemed like a bf) and partied hard with a mid-eastern fella with her bewildered-only-for-a-moment-boyfriend getting over it in a matter of minutes and grooving his pelvis to another lass' ass!! (Pardon my language but this is an absolute ankhon dekha haal!) Then there was a very mid-aged woman who tried pretty hard to get an Italian colleague to dance with her and probably also have an after-party meet! She was actively wooing him and it was quite a sight especially that of our embarrassed colleague who had fewer answers to her wooing than questions ;) !!
But importantly, a lot of such incidences and previous small experiences (two, to be precise) of nightclubs have given me a whole new take on gender bias regarding sexual aggression, cigarette addictions and such. Now, before you guys think I am making a general statement, or am a MCP(!), let me make it clear these are only observations from night clubs and as such do not take into account the population (majority) which does not visit night clubs. I do not think anymore that only men make passes or lewd comments, light a cig, catch other gender's ass (literally!) or are prone to fight with our own gender to seek other gender's attention - Men, the women have arrived at this junction too!! They actively seek sexual pleasures and are ready to behave as badly and sometimes more nastily than you can think of... ouch!
I have observed these things in the nightclubs here in Europe or also probably the one at Purdue University in USA! Not been to an Indian one but I am sure it won't be much different.
Nightclubs! People get drunk. Ladies puff cigarettes like chimneys of Indian kitchen. But, importantly, the human nature - the human psyche - is absolutely naked and in its most basic instinct at these places. We are the animals which we many times are not outside those smoky rooms in the outer world. We are the animals whose only morality is about seeking bodily pleasure and multiplying. We want to survive and we want to rule. Remove the conditioning of the mind that culture did to you - which is exactly what these places afford to individuals - and we are truly what we are - the next evolutionary step from the apes! Women seek healthy and attractive males. Males attract lovely females and their testosterone does the rest. Its pure survivalistic violence and I guess, one that is at all levels much lesser in intensity than the mental, societal violence that we indulge in and be a part of as a consequence of being a society and culture. There are some things to be learnt by us as a race before we assume the cloak of culture. I am not saying nightclubs will teach us that. But clues do lie there!
