Pay up for the party

Party animals will be shelling out a bomb to attend parties this New Year’s Eve. But, what many don’t know is that hotels, lounges, pubs hosting parties also have to pay a tariff of Rs 40,000 onwards (depending on the number of hours for which the music is played) to PPL or Phonographic Performance Ltd (a licensing body registered under the HRD ministry of Government of India). Failing to do this can lead to imprisonment or a penalty in the form of a heavy fine for an infringement of Copyright Act 1957.
Many popular New Year party venues haven’t yet paid for the licensing though quite a few of them have confirmed to pay before December 31.
According to Sowmya Choudhry, Country Head, Events, PPL, popular party hubs like Hotel Park and Styx Pub have refused to pay the licensing fees where as, others such as Lalit Ashok, Taj Residency, Taj Gateway, Taj West End, Leela Palace, The Oberoi have promised to pay before December 31.
“When we ask the licensing fees from party organisers, a majority of them get uncomfortable paying their dues. But, we have agencies working under us who monitor these parties and if needed we even take cases to the court and stop these parties,” says Sowmya.
As a result many are not happy with the situation. They feel that after spending thousands, one should be able to party peacefully without any interruption.
“Club owners and party organisers think only of business and don’t care much about the festive spirit,” says Yougen Tshering Lama, a regular partygoer.
But there are others who feel that even if the organisers haven’t paid the licensing fees but are successful in keeping the spirit of the party alive, ‘it’s absolutely fine to spend thousands’. “New Year celebrations happen once a year. I don’t mind blowing Rs 2000-3000 or more for an awesome party,” says Sangey Rinzing Bhutia, a graduate from St Joseph’s College, Arts and Science.
The Park will be paying the licensing fees for New Year’s Eve. “We have time till December 31,” says a source from the hotel.