I don’t expect everyone in Bombay to care about discotheques. They weren’t a popular destination for a majority of residents and were open only to those who could afford them, which automatically eliminated a few million people from being able to step into one. They were also looked at with suspicion because what happened in so many of those dimly-lit halls made a lot of people worry about the moral degradation of Bombay’s youth. I think about them though whenever I move past buildings that once housed them.

We didn’t really need much money to enter a discotheque, back in the day, because there was almost always one that catered to those with lighter pockets. Juhu had its share of places for college students alone, who couldn’t afford more than a beer but gravitated to Three Flights Up, Go Bananas, or the Cavern because it was nicer to spend an afternoon there than in a dusty lecture hall. The people of Bandra had Rock Around The Clock, while those with a higher allowance could stroll into Fire ‘n’ Ice or the legendary 1900s. Even those who hated dancing and preferred headbanging found a home at the Razz Rhino.