Chennai preserves its tradition and culture without the help of politically motivated puritans. But the city has its share of vices that continue.
CHENNAI: Rajesh Sharma (22), an engineering graduate from Mumbai, was least amused when his first job offer came from a Chennai firm.
During his first week at Chennai, he found his apprehensions coming true. Pubs closed at 11 pm and nightclubs seldom allowed anyone on to the dance floor. In the morning, 'protectors of Tamil' threw rotten eggs at an actor who spoke about pre-marital sex and held public meetings to preach culture in the evening.
The following week, his team member Senthil Kumar took Sharma to the other side of Chennai. Where he could drink late into the night, on the Marina beach; watch scantily clad girls dance to Tamil and Hindi film songs; go for a massage where the masseuse used more than her hands; and make some extra bucks if he could be a part-time masseur for women.
Chennai preserves its tradition and culture without the help of politically motivated and self-proclaimed puritans. But the city has its share of vices that continue. Much like in other metros, newspapers here carry advertisements of massage parlours catering to carnal needs.
When DNA made calls to 10 of the 50-odd massage parlours in the city, the responses were more than suggestive. "Male-to-male Rs 350. Female-to-male Rs 500. Special services extra." is the standard pitch. "Give a call an hour in advance and I will let you know where to come," said a lady at a parlour in West Mambalam. "Only the doctor does the massage and, hope you don't mind, sir, the doctor is a lady," another one said.
The anti-vice squad (AVS) of Chennai police last week arrested two persons, including a woman, from a massage parlour in T Nagar last week. "There have been three cases of such arrests in the last couple of months," AVS assistant commissioner Balu Swamy told DNA.
"We regularly send decoys to these places, but we can't take action unless we have enough evidence."
Earlier this month, the Chennai police arrested a 24-year-old MBA graduate and son of an Indian Air Force Officer for soliciting women customers through the internet. The youth was allegedly offering sexual services for Rs 2,000 for married women and Rs 3,000 for unmarried women.
On Thursday, 'Tamil Murasu,' an evening tabloid in Chennai, ran a story of a sting operation on an alleged male prostitute who posed himself as a masseur. There are about 100 such men in Chennai, the report said. "We can't take action based on media reports," Chennai police commissioner R Nataraj told DNA.
"The MBA graduate was the first and only case of male prostitution we have come across." Meanwhile, one of the old dance bars in Chennai has reopened. The "show" ran houseful last Friday at the 'Cultural dance center' attached to a bar, a stone's throw from the arterial Mount Road. Entry fee: Rs 150. Rajesh Sharma could ask his boss for a hike in his entertainment allowance.
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