SAFETY WITH THE SORORITY: Girl gangs are hanging out sans males. Picture by Rashbehari Das

Girls just want to have fun ? and men really don?t matter. Step into a cool caf? or a lazy lounge or a dimly-lit disc, and you encounter girl gangs giggling, chatting and dancing away to glory. And they are all hanging out without guys ? by choice.

That is revealed in a survey conducted by Caf? Coffee Day at some of its outlets in Calcutta, frequented by the young and trendy. ?The survey was conducted in outlets like Park Street, Rawdon Street, City Centre and the Cafe Coffee Day lounge on Lake Road. Of every 100 people walking into the cafes, 45 were found to be groups of women not accompanied by any male. They were out to have quality time with friends,? says marketing head Sudipta Sengupta.

But why dump the guys? There are hardly any good guys in Calcutta, is a common crib from the girl gang. Event manager Geetanjali Jolly is less blunt: ?Men are often impatient and monotonous. Moreover, there are times when a woman takes better care of a fellow woman.?

Safety is a factor not lost on the likes of Moon Moon, a party regular in Mumbai, who was down for the weekend. ?I felt much safer partying at midnight with my sister in Shisha. Seeing such a large number of women having a good time was reassuring,? said the 26-year-old investment banker.

?On any given party night, 60 per cent of women are not accompanied by men,? says DJ Girish of Shisha Bar. ?We have been successful in creating an atmosphere that makes women coming in small or big groups comfortable.?

At Caf? Coffee Day, too, the service is geared towards making women feel almost at home.

?We let the girls be, and so they are comfortable spending long hours here. The staff is friendly, but they do not approach the girls frequently for orders,? explains marketing head Sudipta.

The fact that the woman no longer needs a boyfriend or husband to foot the bill at a caf? by day and a disc by night is a factor powering this phenomenon.

?Earlier, so many women had to depend on men to pay their bills. And people at such places would frown on women walking in without men. Such hassles are gradually becoming non-existent,? observes entrepreneur Deepti Agarwal.

Some say it?s just carrying the concept of grandmothers or mothers hanging out in the courtyard or the drawing room to the caf? or the lounge.

?They would gossip at home over hookahs and betel leaves, now we do the same at a public hangout, often over over hookahs and Breezers,? says Sunita Aiyyar, a 28-year-old professional, who often hangs out in no-men-please groups.

The clincher, though, is having fun just the way they like it.

?It is so much fun hanging around in all-girl group because that gives you a chance to do all sorts of crazy things. You can indulge in girl talk, which is just not possible when boys are around. The atmosphere is also that much more relaxed,? says Puja Agarwal, a third-year student.