New Year party planners, pubs pour out perks to spirit up sale of tickets

Pune: A significant drop in attendance for New Year's Eve parties has left city pubs and event organisers in a spot. Many venues have reported only 15-25% ticket sales so far as compared to 50-60% at the same time last year, prompting aggressive pricing strategies and offers. The situation has been further complicated by last-minute cancellations from international and domestic performers, with at least two events cancelled owing to poor ticket sales.

"For my venues where we were planning an NYE parties, ticket sales remained in 15-18% range," a representative of a prominent restaurant association in Pune said. "Citizens, including some regulars, are exhibiting heightened cautiousness, preferring intimate house gatherings over commercial festivities. Some are even choosing to celebrate outside the city.



This consumer hesitation stems from recent strict enforcement of regulations, particularly following the Porsche incident," he said. In response to the declining sales, several venues have implemented aggressive pricing strategies. "At least 90% parties in Pune have reduced their ticket prices significantly — with packages originally priced at Rs 2,500-3,000 now offering enhanced benefits like premium alcohol instead of IMFL (Indian-Made Foreign liquor) or even unlimited drinks.

Group bookings are being incentivized too, with some venues offering rates as low as Rs 1,400-1,500 per person for groups," he said. He said circulating rumours about drink limits per person were also adding to the confusion. Venue operators though clarified that no such official curbs existed for establishments offering unlimited alcohol packages.

"Compared to last year, we're seeing about 28% lower ticket sales. Many people have opted to travel to Goa, Dubai or Thailand. The Porsche accident and resultant actions have made people extra cautious," the owner of a prominent Koregaon Park lounge said.

Ashwin Trivedi, owner of The Community Table resto-bar in Hinjewadi High Street, said, "Compared to last year when tickets were almost sold out by this time, we're seeing a 40% drop in sales. In spite of offering chauffeur-driven rides at a nominal fee after the party, ticket sales have not picked up." Nicky Ramnani, partner at The Daily All Day, said: "After the Porsche case, police, excise department and civic authorities cracked down on establishments.

When venues face constant interruptions in music or early shutdowns, it ruins the experience. People have started choosing to party at home." Ramnani said, "For our own venue, there's been a noticeable drop in attendance, particularly for weekend gigs.

Even for New Year's Eve, we had zero table bookings till 48 hours ago." Vikram Shetty, owner of Sadanand Resort and Sadanand Regency, said, "By this time last year, we had reached 100% bookings. This year, we're still at just 10-15%.

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