Pepper spray incident at a city nightclub leaves partygoers in shock
Meghna Mukherjee
The nightclub in Lower Parel had to be evacuated after patrons complained of eye irritation and breathlessness.
| TNN | Mar 28, 2018, 01.00 AM IST
The nightclub where the pepper spray incident took place
The restaurant and nightlife industry of the city has witnessed a lot over the past one year — losing out on some of the best food joints due to licensing issues and the massive fire that broke out at Kamala Mills on December 28 last year. On Saturday night, another freak incident left partygoers shocked. Around 250 people had to be evacuated from the nightclub Tamasha in Lower Parel after someone used a pepper spray on customers who were dining and dancing. People started complaining of eye irritation and breathlessness. When BT spoke to the club's owner, Priyank Sukhija, about the incident, he said that customers were immediately rushed out to the nightclub's courtyard at around 12.15 am.
"A staffer called to inform me that customers were moved outside when they started complaining of eye irritation and breathlessness. Thankfully, the nightclub is on the ground floor, so it wasn't difficult to evacuate them. The staff immediately checked the kitchen, thinking it was an electric spark or that the exhaust system had stopped working. After everything was ruled out, we realised that somebody had used pepper spray on the sly. We immediately opened the windows and doors. When the air cleared after 20 minutes, we asked our patrons to get back inside the club. By the time we resumed our services around 12.45 am, 20 people had left. We have lodged a complaint with the local police and have also shared CCTV footage with them. The probe is still on," said Priyank.
Shaumya Adhikari (*name changed on request), 32, an investment banker was present with his buddies when the incident took place. He recalled, "I was dining with my friends when I suddenly started sneezing and coughing. When others around started doing the same, we panicked. We assumed that the source of the irritation were the 'tandoors' in the nightclub. Some staff members then instructed us to step out so that they could investigate the cause. Within half-an-hour, they resumed services after reassuring us that someone had played mischief with a pepper spray. In fact, we did see a couple of people walking away right after we had gathered in the courtyard. I don't know if someone did it for fun or was trying to evade paying the bill. Whatever it was, I wish the person understands that it was a cheap stunt."
'It's time for the restaurant industry to be vigilant'
Restaurateur and member of the National Restaurant Association of India (NRAI), Riyaaz Amlani, added, "This is an unfortunate incident. One of my nightclubs in Delhi also faced a similar incident. This is plain nasty. Whoever did it (using pepper spray), should know that apart from inconveniencing everyone present, he/she had also put a whole lot of lives in danger. Just imagine what would have happened if the situation had gone out of hand."
Seconding him is restaurateur Anjan Chatterjee who feels that the time has come for the restaurant industry to impose stricter rights of admission. He said, "I totally condemn this act. People who go to restaurants and nightclubs want to enjoy themselves and the restaurant industry, including the staff members make sure that people have a good time. We, on the other hand expect our patrons to be at their best behaviour. People should understand that there is a limit to which they can have fun, especially in a public place. Unleashing pepper spray in a closed restaurant is too harsh and if forced, we may have to come up with firm security measures."
Restaurateur Prashant Chaudhri cautions patrons against such behaviour. He added, "People should remember the Kamala Mills tragedy and the fact that so many lives were lost. If someone wants to pull off a prank such as this (referring to the pepper spray incident), they should know that if customers had panicked and tried running out of the nightclub, it could have led to a stampede and someone could have got hurt. I think it's time for the restaurant industry to be more vigilant and adopt strict admission methods."
While Mumbai has witnessed something of this sort for the first time, similar incidents have been reported internationally in the past. Three people were reported injured in a pepper spray incident in Michigan, USA, recently. In Zimbabwe last year, a stampede occurred at a popular nightclub after unknown people unleashed pepper spray on the crowd.
Taking steps to minimise nuisance
Members of the restaurant industry have now decided to sit together and come up with a plan to safeguard partygoers from such unwanted incidents.
Priyank said, "We have decided to install a metal detector outside our nightclub, where people will have to get their bags and belongings checked before they enter. While we do not want women to stop carrying pepper sprays, we will have to take it away at the entrance. The spray will have a tag attached to it with the name of the person it belongs to. This way, we hope to minimise similar incidents."
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1Pepper spray incident at a city nightclub leaves partygoers in shock
2Drumming out good vibes on Versova beach!
3Mumbai's partygoers put their 'GK' to test
4Mumbai's Dabbawalas 2.0!
5School students pledge to conserve water on World Water Day 2018
6Collegians lend a 'write' hand to students with disabilities
7Mumbai girl attempts world record by cycling 20,000 kms across India
8Women take the lead at Gudi Padwa rally
9Students of Government Law College organise the International Law Summit
10Mumbai just had its first 'anti-party'!