Tens of thousands of Mumbai’s bar dancers and owners staged a rally on Friday to protest against alleged police harassment and a draft municipal law that aims to clean up hundreds of drinking houses.
The law requires bar owners to ensure that dancers do not wear ”skimpy” dresses, that a barrier is erected around the stage and that establishments conform to strict new building requirements.
”How do you define what is skimpy? What would you call the dresses worn by Bollywood heroines? It is sheer hypocrisy,” said Manjit Singh, president of the Fight for Rights of Bar Owners Association.
”We will simply have to shut our shops and go away. Will the government provide employment to these girls?” he told the cheering protesters, who carried placards with pictures of scantily clad Bollywood stars.
The planned law is one more instance of police harassment and a pretext for them to take bribes, Singh said.
”They have taken our money and then impose these stringent conditions that will drive our customers away. We promise to fight for your hard-earned bread and water,” he added.
More than 1 250 dance bars employing more than 100 000 dancers are sprawled across Mumbai and its outskirts.
Dancers ape Bollywood dance numbers for customers looking for food, liquor and entertainment.
Police say many bars double as prostitute pick-up joints. — Sapa-AFP