Who said Las Vegas is the last word in sinful indulgence? It?s all happening right here at your neighbourhood disc, lounge and club. With every night haunt vying with each other to present exotic extravaganzas, Calcutta party-goers never had it so good.

Christmas Eve saw everybody from six-month-old Red Kitchen and Lounge to big boss Tantra rope in Arabian, Turkish, British, Brazilian and Russian dancers. New Year?s Eve looks even more glamourous with Australian, American and European dancers dominating the bar tops and dance floors at most party addresses in town including Saturday Club, Cloud 9, Swabhumi, Incognito and Regency Towers.

Pole and belly dancing are among the most popular acts, but the foreign dancers, usually trained in club dancing with a diploma to boot, pack in a lot more like acrobats and juggling with pre-choreographed sequences.

?Western dancers are more spontaneous and professional than their Indian counterparts,? says Sreyansh Chopra of Lakshya, an event management company instrumental in bringing such troupes. ?The trend caught on in Calcutta three years ago, but this year the demand has shot up phenomenally,? adds Chopra.

Industry insiders reveal, eye candy apart it?s much cheaper to bring foreign club dancers than Indian celebrities who charge a whopping Rs 25 lakh on an average for a performance, while dancers from distant shores usually charge Rs 3 to 5 lakh per performance.

?The costs vary according to the quality of performance. While in Delhi they zero in on any foreign tourist at Janpath and get them to perform at minimal charges at nightclubs and private parties, Mumbai and Goa audiences are more discerning about quality. Calcutta is still nascent and audiences just want a little bit of exotic skin show,? explains Chopra.

Well-travelled disc hoppers though feel that the performances here are much more tempered than what one witnesses at international hot spots like Bangkok and Las Vegas. ?We are still a very conservative society and not too many people would be comfortable with an out and out cabaret or strip tease,? feels regular party-goer Avinash Saigal, just back from Bangkok.

?We go for classy acts like ballets rather than sleaze. We only invite trained dancers, some of whom have even been part of Michael Jackson and Britney Spears? troupes,? reiterates Ashim Mewar of Red Kitchen and Lounge.

Not everyone agrees however. ?Quality is not usually up to the mark in Calcutta as people are not in tune with international trends and are just satisfied with a 10-minute peep show,? says a city DJ on condition of anonymity.

Event managers and agencies, though, work overtime to ensure these fleeting glimpses on the big nights. ?We start planning New Year bashes at least six months in advance,? says Chopra. It?s a painstaking process that involves contacting agencies abroad. Most of the event managers contact East European countries like Ukraine, where it?s easier to strike a bargain. Then starts the process of getting business visas of the A or B category depending on their duration of stay. Air fare is also a major consideration, which can often escalate the costs.

For the moment, however, the city is riding the high crest of a glittering New Year?s Eve, international style!