02-11-2007, 01:36 AM
<!--emo&
--><img src='style_emoticons/<#EMO_DIR#>/sad.gif' border='0' style='vertical-align:middle' alt='sad.gif' /><!--endemo--> Bar girls spice up Punjab polls, courtesy 'netas'
Anilesh S Mahajan
[ 11 Feb, 2007 0017hrs ISTTIMES NEWS NETWORK ]
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LUDHIANA: 'Balle-balle' has metamorphosed into 'bar-bar' in Punjab these days. And, doing some rip-roaring business during the campaigning for Punjab polls are bar dancers brought in by netas to liven up their loudspeaker-stage-'bhashan' routine.
In fact, the bevy of women, with loud make-up and 'jhatkas' in place, have come from places as disparate as Mumbai, Bangalore, Nagpur and Nepal.
There are also those streaming in from Uttarakhand, Delhi, Kolkata and Himachal Pradesh.
Geeta, one such dancer from Mumbai, doesn't mind the lusty crowd though. "There are a lot of (bar) girls from Mumbai and Bangalore in Punjab these days," she said, her make-up crinkling as she smiled. "There is good money."
Geeta's manager, who calls himself Rajan Bhai, said he got the "orders" for her dance performance much in advance. "We have a few orders for UP polls also," he said.
"But in Punjab the number (of performances) is more. In six days we have earned more than Rs 1 lakh. We could not expect this in one whole month back home." Candidates who have "ordered" Geeta pay for her travel by car and also bear her boarding and lodging expenses.
Ashok Kumar Sharma of Payal Orchestra, one of the men who gets such shows here, said the girls charge anywhere between Rs 500 and 5,000.
"It depends on the audience," he said. "<span style='font-size:21pt;line-height:100%'>In times when it is difficult to get an audience even for the Prime Minister, these girls come in handy. </span>
Their role is very important. They bind the audience. It is so common now that you will see such girls even in nukkad rallies, just two to three of them regaling audiences for an hour or more."
Rinku Kumar, who refused to reveal where he comes from, said most of the girls are here on a contract for 10-to-15 days.
"The girls from Delhi, Mumbai and Banglore are the most highly paid, Rs 2,500 for one hour," he said. Another organiser said smaller cities and rural areas are more profitable.
"There the audiences reciprocate and shower more money," he said, adding, "Places like Jalandhar, Patiala, Ludhiana and a few parts in Gurdaspur and Amristar have turned out to be ripe markets."
--><img src='style_emoticons/<#EMO_DIR#>/sad.gif' border='0' style='vertical-align:middle' alt='sad.gif' /><!--endemo--> Bar girls spice up Punjab polls, courtesy 'netas'Anilesh S Mahajan
[ 11 Feb, 2007 0017hrs ISTTIMES NEWS NETWORK ]
RSS Feeds| SMS NEWS to 8888 for latest updates
LUDHIANA: 'Balle-balle' has metamorphosed into 'bar-bar' in Punjab these days. And, doing some rip-roaring business during the campaigning for Punjab polls are bar dancers brought in by netas to liven up their loudspeaker-stage-'bhashan' routine.
In fact, the bevy of women, with loud make-up and 'jhatkas' in place, have come from places as disparate as Mumbai, Bangalore, Nagpur and Nepal.
There are also those streaming in from Uttarakhand, Delhi, Kolkata and Himachal Pradesh.
Geeta, one such dancer from Mumbai, doesn't mind the lusty crowd though. "There are a lot of (bar) girls from Mumbai and Bangalore in Punjab these days," she said, her make-up crinkling as she smiled. "There is good money."
Geeta's manager, who calls himself Rajan Bhai, said he got the "orders" for her dance performance much in advance. "We have a few orders for UP polls also," he said.
"But in Punjab the number (of performances) is more. In six days we have earned more than Rs 1 lakh. We could not expect this in one whole month back home." Candidates who have "ordered" Geeta pay for her travel by car and also bear her boarding and lodging expenses.
Ashok Kumar Sharma of Payal Orchestra, one of the men who gets such shows here, said the girls charge anywhere between Rs 500 and 5,000.
"It depends on the audience," he said. "<span style='font-size:21pt;line-height:100%'>In times when it is difficult to get an audience even for the Prime Minister, these girls come in handy. </span>
Their role is very important. They bind the audience. It is so common now that you will see such girls even in nukkad rallies, just two to three of them regaling audiences for an hour or more."
Rinku Kumar, who refused to reveal where he comes from, said most of the girls are here on a contract for 10-to-15 days.
"The girls from Delhi, Mumbai and Banglore are the most highly paid, Rs 2,500 for one hour," he said. Another organiser said smaller cities and rural areas are more profitable.
"There the audiences reciprocate and shower more money," he said, adding, "Places like Jalandhar, Patiala, Ludhiana and a few parts in Gurdaspur and Amristar have turned out to be ripe markets."