Bans & Bar Girls: How the ban emerged from economic reasons, not moral grounds
Interviewed Sameena Dalwai for her book Bans & Bar Girls. The interview appeared in Sakal Times Ambika Shaligram Published on : 24 Mar, 2020 , 12:21 pm Earlier this year, the Supreme Court paved the way for the reopening of dance bars in Mumbai, relaxing stringent conditions imposed by the Maharashtra government on their licencing and functioning. The decision to ban dance bars was taken in August 2005 and the public discourse revolved around the subject of ‘morality’. A new book on the subject, Bans & Bar Girls — Performing Caste in Mumbai’s Dance Bars, says the reason had to do with economics, with wo men from lower caste earning more. The monograph (defined as a highly detailed and thoroughly documented study or paper written about a limited area of a subject or field of inquiry) has been authored by Sameena Dalwai and it has been published by Women Unlimited — An associate of Kali for Women. EXAMINING THE REASONS In the introduction to the book, Dalwai says, ‘The essence