The dancers, known as bar girls, remain significantly clothed[7] throughout the performance, showing at most some midriff, part of the back, and bare arms.
In Maharashtra, bar dancer attire is often ethnic Indian (sari or lehenga-choli), whereas in some other places, such as Bangalore, it may include Western garb.
Male waiters hover over patrons and dancers who get too close to each other, both to oversee transactions between the two as well as ostensibly to prevent sex-for-money deals being made.
[8] Patrons sometimes shower bar girls with currency notes, which generally results in more animated dancing.
Many bar dancers are able to make hundreds of rupees a night in this way, thanks to generous, well-off, and possibly inebriated patrons.
It also stated that popular girls received a monthly salary of ₹ 100,000–300,000, while the bar owner kept all the money showered on them.
[13] Dance bars closed at midnight, but in 2000, the government changed the rule to permit them to stay open until 1:30 am.
Their clients are from all strata of society, including college students, corporate workers and even schoolboys who bribe to get in.
[17] Dance bars serve as a meeting place for criminals, making them a hub for intelligence gathering by police.
On 4 June 2006, the Crime Branch of the Delhi Police busted the El Dorado dance bar in Hotel Rajdoot on Mathura Road,[24] and arrested 13 dance bar girls and one of the hotel owners on charges ranging from obscenity to immoral trafficking and abetment.
The girls had previously been employed in Mumbai dance bars, but shifted to Delhi after those establishments were banned.
[4] On 25 February 2004, following the raid, the Maharashtra government issued a notification restricting persons below the age of 21 from entering dance bars, discothèques and pubs.