Novel idea! No real money, so Mumbai dance bars use fake notes

Novel idea! No real money, so Mumbai dance bars use fake notes

The fake notes covered in a roll of plastic can be reused by customers at dance bars

What do you do when you run out of real money? Use play money, instead. That's the solution for the current problem at some dance bars in town.

A patron's card is swiped and fake cash wrapped in plastic is handed to him to use, at the bar.

The orchestra bar industry, which depends heavily on cash flow, whether its giving money to the performers to tipping waiters and doormen, has been badly hit by the sudden withdrawal of R100 and R1,000 notes.

"There are barely any customers coming in for the past two days. Nobody has change. We are accepting R100 and R500 notes because we will be able to exchange them at the bank. But, how do we run our business without change? Customers need these small notes to use inside the bar," said Rohan Shetty, owner of an Andheri bar.

"We have kept fake note rolls for customers to give performers while we take payment via a debit or credit card. Generally, we have a supplier for change who provides us with bundles of notes of R10, R20, R50, R100 denominations. He has been avoiding our calls for the past two days. He may be out of change. Others are asking for 13 per cent extra just to provide change," Shetty said. Customers can put these rolls around performers' necks, in the absence of real notes, say owners.

Complaining that he had lost business over two days, Govind Shetty, owner of a south Mumbai orchestra bar, said, "We cannot run our business without change. Most of the waiters and workers, even performers, have a major chunk of their income coming from cash dealings inside bars." While a few bars decided to remain shut or close before time, most were open but saw a drop in footfall.

"We are not denying Rs 500 and Rs 1,000 notes, but we also have to maintain a balance. But, not all dealings can be done with banned notes. Moreover, there are no notes for customers to spend inside the bars," said the owner of another bar from south Mumbai, who did not wish to be named.