Girls are imported from the subcontinent to keep alive the mujra nightclubs in London
Ishara Bhasi in London investigates in the traditional dance of Lust: Mujra in India, Pakistan and abroad.
It was a night that London socialite Sonam Manchanda (name changed) wanted her guests to remember forever. What better than to have a Meena Kumari lookalike light up her wedding anniversary celebration in Pakeezah style? With this pretty image in mind, Manchanda set out to realise her novel idea-a mujra (a traditional form of Indian dance) party.
But several days of scouting for her dancers-in forbidden clubs with dubious customers in the underbelly of London-dashed her hopes and brought her back to reality. What she came upon were large numbers of vulgarly dressed Asian women offering titillating jerks to raunchy Bollywood numbers. There was neither musical tradition adhered to nor any classical dance steps to speak of. Disillusioned, Manchanda settled for a kathak performance from a reputed dance school for the anniversary soiree.
Manchanda may have spurned the mujra performers in disgust, but obviously these young dancing girls-mostly exports from India and Pakistan-attract a different kind of clientele. Besides performing at mujra clubs that dot the road in the Wembley area of west London and along Rumford Road in east London, the girls also dance at private parties at posh homes. Their popularity spreads by word of mouth. For the girls, the dance form is a means of livelihood but for those who run these clubs it is lucrative business. Says Imran Ali, who used to run such a club for years: “Mujras are big in Pakistan. When we realised that Asians here also wanted to go to mujra parties, we started getting girls from Pakistan and India. You can make a lot of money … there is a lot of demand.”
Girls from India and Pakistan, hoping for jobs, are brought to the UK on entertainment visas usually valid only for three months. Official documents show that the girls are dancers by profession. Sometimes a group of girls may be sighted at London’s townhalls where they also act in “dramas” of dubious taste. While some girls hail from places where mujras are traditionally danced, others take the flight to these clubs, operated by organised gangs, with a dream of making it big in the entertainment industry without comprehending what they are getting into. In Pakistan, where acting in films is not considered respectable, girls seeking a break in showbusiness perform in these clubs as a first step. Some actually get the break they are looking for. “The girl who performed a mujra at my wedding later became a pop star in Pakistan. They all want to make it big in show business,” says Ali, who decided to close shop because of frequent fights between gangsters at the parties. Soliciting customers is not unheard of at such venues. Ali is blunt about it: “They are not forced into prostitution, but if they want to no one stops them. It is their personal business.” Club owners reportedly prefer girls with a mujra background as they don’t usually interfere with their business or demand more money.
THE VICIOUS RACKET
MODUS OPERANDI: Girls from India and Pakistan are brought to the United Kingdom on short-term entertainment or work visas. The official documents show that these girls are dancers by profession.
ORGANISED CRIME: Many of the mujra clubs are operated by organised Asian gangs, adding to the law and order problems in UK.
IMBALANCE OF TRADE: The club owners take 70 per cent of the money that is earned. The rest is shared between the dancers and the band that usually plays raunchy Bollywood “item” numbers.
CAREER DREAMS: Many girls travel to the UK to get a foothold in showbusiness. They consider the mujra clubs as the first step in their careers. Some of the mujra performers have actually got the breaks they were looking for and have ventured into music and films.
Mujra clubs have thrived in London, Bradford and Birmingham for several years but only came into the limelight with the discovery of businessman Tahir Butt’s body in his burnt-out Mitsubishi Pajero in March 1999. At first it was thought his murder was linked to a drug war, but a probe revealed a mujra connection.
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