No screening, no vetting allow ‘minor incidents’ to spike at Kolkata nightclubs
Times of India | 30 October 2025The recent assault on a homemaker at a nightclub off E M Bypass — where she and her friends were terrorised for 90 minutes by a group of hoodlums — triggered debates on the culture of entry and monitoring in the city's night spots. The group molested and attacked the women with beer bottles after a heated argument escalated inside the club.
Several nightclub owners and managers admit, on condition of anonymity, that the pressure to fill up their premises often compromises guest screening.
"The competition has become very stiff," said the manager of a popular establishment in Chowringhee. "Every other week, a new party joint opens somewhere in the city. If we're too selective, our tables go empty."
Others are more candid about the financial strain. "We pay huge rents, salaries, licence fees, and electricity bills," said the owner of a nightclub in Salt Lake's Sector V. "Sometimes, even if a guest has a bad record, we allow them back because we know that he would be spending at the bar — but we keep a close eye. It's not correct, but we have the pressure of running the place profitably."
There is also an influx of easy money, due to which the management of some establishments looks the other way. "If we know a guest will give us substantial business, we tend to relax the norms for them. If we are very strict, some other nightclub will allow them, and we will lose the business," said the owner of a club on Camac Street.
However, not all venues operate this way. Some establishments are known for strict entry protocols and security measures.
"We scan IDs, check the profiles, and maintain a record of behavioural incidents," said the owner of a south Kolkata pub. "Our guests know they are safe here, and that is why they keep coming back."
For many women, the incident was a grim reminder of the risks they have long felt while socialising in certain nightclubs. "You can often sense trouble the moment a particular group walks in," said a regular club-goer. "There's little screening, and the staff are often reluctant to intervene unless something goes terribly wrong."
Many recall the time around the early 2000s when several nightclubs became regular haunts of hardened criminals. "We would see clashes among rival gangs. A criminal wanted in many cases was arrested outside a famous nightclub on Park Street," said a retired police officer.
