(From top) Singers Juggy D and Veronica wow the crowd at B.E.D; bartender Ami Shroff at Tantra. Pictures by Rashbehari Das

From Daler Mehndi to Mika and Bally Sagoo to Apache Indian, Punjabi pop has grown beyond boundaries. Now, Juggy D is the latest sensation to rock the Punjabi pop scene.

Juggy D and Veronica from London were in the city to perform at B.E.D. (bar, entertainment and dining) on Ballygunge Circular Road. “Punjabi as a language might not be very easy but it strikes a chord with everyone. The language and culture is not limited to the state of Punjab; it is global,” says Juggy D.

For a change, the venue was not a night club but the dhaba outside. “The sale of passes has been phenomenal and we won’t be able to accommodate so many people inside,” explained a spokesperson for B.E.D.

Despite the drizzle on Friday night, the makeshift shamiana was packed. The performance started at 9 pm and continued for a good one-and-a-half hours. Tracks like Soniye, Hum tum and Akheer to which the singers lip-synced, were a hit with the audience. Veronica’s spaghetti-top look and body language on stage went down quite well with the men in the crowd.

Bar belle

Free-flowing spirits, a lady bartender turning heads for the way she looked and the way she whipped ’em up, and models walking the ramp in ensembles which could give the Mallika Sherawats and the Payal Rohatgis a run for their clothes.

The light rain on Friday evening may have lowered the temperature outside, but inside Tantra, where the preview of Radico Khaitan’s 8 PM Bermuda White Rum was staged, the heat was truly on. The white spirit is being promoted as a party drink straight from the Caribbean.

“The colour white is synonymous with hygiene and good health. There is a tendency amongst people to go for spirits that are white in colour,” said Raju Vaziraney, president, sales and marketing, Radico Khaitan.

The launch of the white rum was followed by a fashion show, where a group of models walked the bartop of the night club clad in beachwear with bright floral prints signifying the spirit.

But it was 19-year-old Ami Shroff, a stunning bartender from Mumbai, who stole the show. Whether mixing mocktails in Cocktail style or juggling bottles set on fire, she did it with elan. “Bartending started as a hobby and will remain so all my life,” said Ami, for whom books score over the bar at the moment.

Black bash

What’s a night out for women without men? Great fun, if you were at Tantra last Wednesday. The night club at The Park hosted Dark Diva ? an innovation on Ladies’ Nights ? just for the women to have a blast, especially those in black (those dressed in colour ebony got their share of free alcohol).

“It’s great to see women having a good time. With a little support from the system we hope to make partying for women a comfortable and enjoyable experience every night of the week,” says Arati Rao, manager of Tantra.

Backless Bombshell is up next, this Wednesday.