No legal barriers for women but genders yet to blend in bars

NEW DELHI: The Supreme Court may have allowed women for bartending but the bars in the capital are yet to hear footfall of female professionals.

The fear of social stigma is seemingly preventing girls from getting into this area though several are showing interest.

"The impact is not so good. It is a very different profession even for the males. It will take some time for females to take it as their career," says Nischal Gurung, Director, Cocktails and Dreams School of Bar and Beverage Management.

He feels that since bartending is still considered taboo, it requires a lot of awareness.

A handful of women, who have dared to flick the peg so far, are also still to shed the fear of social rejection.

"I am always chased for comments. I am fed up with this. Even my parents have started restricting me now," says a girl bartender, who wishes complete anonymity.

Some of the bartending training institutes have been getting queries from the fair sex, including the housewives, but hardly any joins the course.

"Definitely, it's good for the industry. Now we have been getting queries even from housewives who want to spare some time for bartending to earn money. But the law has just come. We can expect substantial proportion of female professionals in the next couple of years," says Rahul Jelkie, Director, Institute of Bar Operation and Management.

Bar owners, who have been expecting to prosper with more number of visitors since the abolition of legal restrictions, think female bartenders would always have an edge against their male counterparts.