KOLKATA: The city’s premier clubs are gradually swinging back to normal from the Covid-induced new normal following the relaxation of night restrictions till 12am. With parties back in most clubs, the footfall went up significantly this weekend. Some of the clubs have organized musical evenings while others are mulling over organizing some special programmes in the next fortnight.
The CEO of Tolly Club, Anil Mukherjee, pointed out that parties have started happening. The club had organized a musical show last week and the response from members was very good. “We have increased the timings and started having events with 75% capacity. The footfall has also improved. There were all types of music at the concert, from pop to folk songs,” he added.
Calcutta Rowing Club secretary Chandan Roychowdhury said since the relaxation of night restrictions, footfall had been on the rise. “Members now come with their families. With physical schools starting, a lot of members are coming with their children, too. I hope it will go up further,” he added. The number of party bookings, too, have gone up in the last few days. “We had five parties last week. The last weekend saw a 30% jump in footfall,” he said.
Chairman, administration, Calcutta Club, Pramit Kumar Ray, said they had organized two mega events last weekend on the club premises. “We had a bakery festival and a social programme on Friday. The attendance was really good with a good crowd for both programmes,” he added. The president of Bengal Club, Ambarish Dasgupta, said, “There has been an increase in footfall and a lot of parties are happening now. We will now organize a physical event at the club, The National Debate. We hope the situation will improve further,” he added.
President of International Club Ratnadeep Chatterjee also agreed that footfall had gone up. “We are holding Inter Club Sports next week,” he said.
New clubs, like Princeton Club and Calcutta Metropolitan Club, too are witnessing happy days. The manager, operation, Princeton Club, Sanjay Karmakar, said there had been a 40% jump in footfall last weekend. “This weekend was superb and we are now open till 11.45pm. We have started having a lot of parties also,” he added. Secretary of Calcutta Metropolitan Club Sanjib Ghosh said, “Our experience was really encouraging. Lot of party bookings are happening and the footfall has also gone up.”
