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An increasing number of people prefer partying at a club or a hotel rather than spending New Year’s Eve at home with family
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Photo: Sandeep Saxena
Frothy fun Young people with deep pockets like to party with buddies
Times are definitely changing with an increasing number of people prefer partying at a club or a hotel rather than spending New Year’s Eve at home with family.
There are many explanations for this trend. Tom Abraham, Associate Engineer of an infrastructure management firm says: “The Indian businessman does not have a hole in his pocket anymore. When you have the money, why not splurge?”
Pub and club owners are enjoying an all time high as far as business is concerned. “Catering to our customers is our purpose and providing them value for their money is our promise,” explains Kunal, owner of a club on the outskirts of the city. Ask DJ Marc why the custom of intimate gatherings has been discarded and he says: “I wouldn’t say people don’t celebrate New Year with family anymore, they do so but in a different way. I’ve even seen a young father dance the night away with his newborn baby in his arms!” When asked why star hotels are popular spots for celebration, restaurateur Sujith David explains: “The subsidized buffet rates, attractive offers and special shows and concerts are attention grabbers.”
For a call centre employee, this is probably the only time of the year when she can actually make plans, let her hair down and party with friends. Newcomer to Bangalore, B.P.O. worker Anamika Ghoshal, comments, “Bangalore is on the hit list for all of us who are looking for jobs outside our own States. We get only one day off from work for New Year and it seems pointless to go home and spend time with our families. The friends we make here are our new families and it would be a waste if we denied ourselves the chance of partying in the pub city of India!”
Students have a different perspective. Ishan Verma, a business management student asserts, “By the time one turns 18, friends occupy a more important place than parents in most teenagers’ lives. We also feel the need to do something different and that would mean partying with buddies.”
He however feels that “this is only a passing phase and that when youngsters settle down, they would obviously revert to traditional celebrations.”
And it is not only Gen X which is all for heading out to party. Manoraj Mahadev, a retired lecturer says: “It is important that we change with the times. And who says one cannot spend New Year with family at a resort? Mahadev, who for the past two years spent New Year’s Eve past two years at a resort with his entire family (including six grandchildren) declares, “If we honour the children by being a part of them, they honour us by upholding tradition.”
Sociologist Bhoomika Prasad says: “This is the cycle of life. At different stages one’s priorities in society changes. Also bearing in mind that we live in a more commercialized society, we are bound to expect as well as adopt such modifications.”
NEETI SARKAR
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