Midnight express

Shaam hai, jaam hai, aur hai nasha...
Aaj ki raat, hona hain kya...
Frames wriggle and twine together, flailing arms split the smoky air, the music pounds, feet pulsate on the floor. Then, as the DJ pumps up the beat, the tempo goes up. Glasses are emptied faster, figures swing like clockwork, the dancers hug, lips lock it's a vortex of high-decibel trance.It's Saturday night at a popular city nightclub and only a few minutes remain till the deadline. The crowd has gone into frenzy and no one's ready to miss a beat. As the figures appear and disappear under the winking, gyrating lights, reality merges with fantasy.
The rule of the game anything is possible. And that's what happening on the dance floor fringes. It's the other side of midnight frolic. Glances are exchanged between youngsters. They get cosy and whisper into each others' ears, leaning on the bar over drinks. There's a mild debate, but the argument is settled within minutes. By the time the DJ winds up, three couples hop into separate cars and taxis and disappear.
A girl in her twenties staggers out with a friend, her eyes half closed. They are helped along by two male friends. One of them gently draws the other girl aside. "Let's take it easy baby," says the youth in a red tee and cajoles the girl into a Scorpio that zooms away into the night.
Fun after discos shut
There's more to partying in Kolkata than meets the eye. Youngsters letting their hair down have more to look forward to by way of fun than just dancing. According to regulars, the real night starts after the discos shut. That's when drugs and flesh trade take over. Many of these joints are meeting points where money and substances change hands. Places where some splurge money and the rest make it by partnering them.
"My friends will meet at Park Street after they pick up a girl for the night," says Amrit Agarwal (name changed), as he sprints out of a nightclub on AJC Bose Road and dashes to the taxi stand. The clock shows 12 as Amrit waves to his friends a group of four who move to another taxi. "8B bus stand. We'll pick up somebody and go back to Park Street," says a youth in a white silk shirt. "Rs 200 extra," says the driver and whisks them away.
A wink or a glance
is all it takes
Meanwhile, things are hotting up at another hangout. As the DJ takes over at the console, couples gravitate to the floor. Some hover around, lazing over drinks. A girl in a black tank top turns heads. Soon, she is flanked by two men. She ignores one and chats up the other, a middle-aged gentleman. They start off by smiling, exchanging sweet nothings. Soon, the girl is giggling and the man has his arms around her bare waist. He draws her close and walks her to the floor. Over the next half an hour they are glued together, letting go only to return to the bar. Soon, they make a quiet exit, head towards the man's car and drive off.
The youngster in the silk shirt is back with a girl in tow. She matches him step for step on the floor. A friend drops in, whispers and he hurries out. They scamper out of the building and return about 20 minutes later. Clearly on a high, he now clutches the girl and jigs violently. Others cheer him on.
Right dose of ecstasy
"Look at those lungi-clad men lurking in the lanes. Ask any of the regulars and he will fetch you a packet from them," says Yogesh, a regular on the nightclub circuit. Ecstasy, commonly known as Adam, X, XTC or Roll in drug parlance is a huge hit with party animals. Though the designer drug is not easily available, many go to the extent of sending agents to Goa or Mumbai for it. Most clubs frisk you, so it's risky to carry it. Have it and walk in is the rule. Many manage to smuggle in marijuana and have it on the sly in smoking rooms. Analgesic tablets like Spasmoproxivon, over-the-counter sedatives like Nitrosun and Altrazolam are popped as well.
"It pays to come to a disco and shake a leg," says a member of the music fraternity who plays in nightclubs. "Many supplement their income by visiting nightclubs. You have a good time for free and make money in the bargain. But remember, not even 5% of those who visit nightclubs fall in this category. The vast majority still believe in clean, innocent fun," said the musician who has been playing for nearly a decade.
It's all in the profile
He is not off the mark. Most joints screen visitors and even turn them away if they dislike their profile'. Stags are not allowed and the marked trouble-makers are kept out by bouncers. But with the number of clubs doubling over the last six years, late-night revelry is no longer the civilised partying it once used to be. "Weekend crowds are bound to be a little unruly, undisciplined. That is the rule everywhere. But yes, over the last couple of years there has been a proliferation of this aggressive crowd. There the others out to make mischief and use discos as a meeting point." he adds.
And then you have the new kids on the block. A new breed of merry-makers has now made an entry. These youngsters from the suburbs descend on Kolkata on weekends. Clad in denims and T-shirts, the boys stick together. The girls walk into nightclubs dressed in conservative skirts and salwar kameezes. Soon, however, they slip into tank tops. Not quite acquainted with the ways of the city, they often fall prey to drugs or the sleaze racket.
Cabbie Gurcharan Singh has witnessed many a midnight drama. A regular at the AJC Bose Road taxi stand, Singh has been ferrying party-hoppers for years. He earns around thousand a night by making just three trips on an average, he says. "Disco goers have always been a little wild. But now youngsters splurge much more than they would five years ago. Yes, drugs and women are easily available. I have seen people taking tablets in my cab. I charge them extra," says Singh.
With the police enforcing a 2 am curfew order on nightclubs, partying has spilled over to homes and hotels. "Kolkata no longer goes to bed early. The new generation believes in no-holds-barred enjoyment which invariably brings in drugs and sleaze. People are ready to experiment. I have taken tablets in a disco myself. It's fair enough if you are not making trouble," says Amit, a regular at nightclubs.