Whose club is it anyway?

We have the British to thank for the emergence of club culture in India. Many of the existing prestigious clubs in the country were established during the British regime and have illustrious history with regard to events and memberships.

In the imperial regime, very few clubs opened their doors to Indians and there is documented report of obvious discrimination. After independence, clubs continued to exist and their administrative responsibilities have been taken over by prominent local citizens in each city.

Since then, the clubs have diligently acquired members in the form of talented people from all walks of life, who have contributed to the prosperity and networking strengths of the clubs.

In most of the existing elite clubs, memberships are often granted based on the applicant’s personal contribution to the society and their abilities to enhance the stature of the clubs.

Today, most of the elite clubs offer a platform for its members and their families and friends to network with a diverse array of like-minded people. I am sure that many associated ventures in the fields of business, social endeavours and arts came into existence, as a part of random conversations held across the dining tables in these clubs.

The clubs also offer lifestyle amenities in the form of sports, fitness, literature, arts and events for its members. There are huge infrastructural amenities such as  open spaces, lawns, dining areas and event venues, which are often offered by them.

The upkeep of the club along with its regular maintenance is funded by the members by means of membership fees and annual maintenance charges. If the members often pay hefty membership fees, it is mainly because they can expect to have state-of-the-art
facilities and services within the confines of a single, large premise.

There has been a lot of furore about the so-called imposition of dress code in most of the elite clubs. The dress codes were drafted to ensure the dignity and decency of its members.

The dress code also makes sure that the people visiting the club do not offend the sensibilities of the other members, a lot of them being seniors by age and stature.
Insistence on respectable dress code is a norm internationally and I fail to understand why it is being blown out of proportion in India. Are we protesting just for the sake of protesting?

Cultural trend
The existing members abide by the set rules and have rarely objected to the idea. Why can’t we think of the club dress codes as a cultural trend and abide by them?
Don’t we stick to an unlabelled dress code when it comes to religious gatherings in order to respect the religious sentiments of people? Why do we have to call them “rules” and make it sound something negative when it is not? When in Rome, do as the Romans do.

There has been a move by the Karnataka government through legislation to demand backdoor membership entry to the MLAs, MLCs and MPs to the clubs, irrespective of whether they fit the cultural set or the fact that long waiting lists would have to be bypassed in order to do so.

Giving the politicians a freeway with the memberships comes with the added peril of modifying the club decorum to accommodate their privileges like security and authority to dominate over the rights of other members. The additional possibility of unwarranted scrutiny and interference could put off a lot of regular and valued club members from getting involved in the club activities.

The whole nation is trying to go liberal with the elimination of the VVIP culture, but in our state, we seem to be going backwards by trying to reinstate it. There is need to back merit-based allocation in all the fields and personally, I believe, that the government should not impose itself on the management and day-to-day running of private clubs.

It takes decades for the institutions to develop and tastefully preserve traditions and culture. There is no need to criticise these traditions by labelling them as discriminatory, when they were always created to streamline people to blend in with ease, and not stand out in a social platform. Let us give all institutions the freedom they deserve, so that they can make a difference.

(The writer is a member of a Bengaluru club for over three decades)