Table for one

Single and not ready to mingle seems to the maxim this Valentine’s Day. So what’s propelling this movement The Mumbai Age finds out...

If you are a single in the city, Valentine's Day is often a nagging reminder about your romantic status. Every social event in the city circles around the idea of love — your neighbourhood bar will hold a couples’ only evening with mushy love songs playing in the background. And if you dare to step out for a drink with your single friends, canoodling couples and PDA will make sure you run for the exit as soon as possible.

This year, however, the Anti Valentine’s Day convention just got bigger. A few of the city's pubs are lending their support to make life for those flying solo a little simpler. Enter Anti Valentine’s Day parties — these establishments are promising a night of good fun for singles, minus the clichés. Now, you can dump your ex's belongings, smash a piñata to put your frustration to good use, and even enjoy unlimited refills on drinks - all while having a good time with fellow singles.

The Irish House is among those city establishments going all out to get single comrades under one roof, because “love is too mainstream”. The team has whipped up a recipe for a fun night out — there are community cocktails and eats for those looking to go out in huge groups. For the lovelorn, the Irish House has come up with a special “Dump Your Ex’s Stuff” Drive to abandon things in a donation box that may remind them of the past. If you are brimming over with anger because of a relationship gone wrong, there’s a piñata-smashing session for those who believe in chanellising their energy. There’s more — vouchers worth '3,000 for those who get the most likes on the life-sized Instagram. Sanju Arora, general manager, The Irish House Pvt. Ltd says, “We wanted to do something that is quirky, and something specifically for the singles. Our customers expect us to do things that aren’t clichéd. We had a similar event last year as well, but this time we decided to go all out. The feedback we have been receiving has been encouraging. People are thanking us for planning activities on the day that is otherwise only meant for couples.

“I think there are a huge number of singles, who want to go out and have fun instead of curling up in their rooms.”

Yet another joint that’s jumping on the Anti Valentine bandwagon is Bandra’s Eddie’s Bistro. With special offers on food and drinks for groups of 3,5, 7 and 11, Eddie’s Bistro’s Anti Valentine’s Day event takes a straight aim at ‘stupid Cupid’. Nishant Misra, the head of operations at Eddie’s, tells us, “The concept is pretty simple. On V-Day there is an overload of red, velvet and hearts and not everyone goes for that sort of thing. And not every couple is extremely mushy. The idea came after many of our friends and regulars suggested that we do something like this. And since we are a bistro we can turn the tables, and do quirky stuff. It is not that we are against celebrating V-Day, in fact it is the opposite, our contention is that V-Day is for everyone and not just couples. For example, I know two girls who have been going out on Valentine’s Day for the past several years. This year one of them has a boyfriend but doesn’t want to celebrate it without her friend so they celebrate as a group of three. It’s a day for love and love is not for couples alone.”

And it’s not just the pubs, clubs and eateries, people in the city too are taking to the concept of anti-valentine’s quite well. Noel Fernandes, a city-based event manager says, “While couples celebrate Valentine’s Day, we will be celebrating our own ‘Ballantine’s Day’. Usually my single friends and I would do this ritual at home, but this year there seem to be a lot of options. So first we are planning to go watch Deadpool since it is as away from a regular romcom as a movie can be and then we are planning to go to any of the pubs, which are doing an Anti Valentine’s thing. While V-Day has always been seen as a day where singles sulk, we are glad that this year there a lot of options which are giving special offers for singles — something that’s hard to find even on a normal day.”

Khar-based Hoppipola has been promoting going all out with the AntiValentine’s Day, with their bars in Mumbai, Chennai, Bengaluru, Pune and Kolkata, following the same theme. With posters like “Love Stinks, Let’s Drink” and “Let’s celebrate being rich singles this Valentine’s Day”, the team is hoping to connect with the youth. Avik Chatterjee, the owner of Hoppipola says, “We have a whole bunch of things happening at all our outlets — special Anti V-Day drinks, chuggathon and we have a photo booth as well. The decor will be in sync with the theme — black hearts everywhere! And there is a huge customer base for these kinds of events. Apart from the singles, a lot of couples do not like the clichéd V-Day celebrations these days. We wanted to make sure we had something in store for them as well”

Ami Shah, a research scholar says, “I have been single for a very long time, and it is simply off-putting to get out on Valentine’s Day. It doesn’t matter if you are single and want to have fun, you suddenly cannot do that on this one day on the city, since every restaurant — big or small — only wants to please couples. Since then I usually sit at home and watch a movie. Going out on V-day is nothing less than an ordeal. If there are options where I can mingle with fellow singles, I am all up for it!”