About 40 pubs in Delhi have collaborated with the Delhi Police for Bar-Talk, an initiative which will have screens display messages and videos against drunken driving.
It seems as if the Supreme Court’s highway liquor ban has made restaurants much more careful about making their patrons aware about the consequences of drunken driving. A few restaurants in Connaught Place, Hauz Khas Village and Nehru Place have joined hands with the Delhi Police for an initiative called Bar-Talk. The initiative will have LED screens installed inside 40 restaurants, pubs and bars that see a footfall of more than two lakh visitors per month, displaying messages and videos against drunk driving. The initiative will be launched in Teddy Boy in CP on Friday, after which the clips will be displayed during the peak hours in the evening at selected restaurants initially. It will be implemented in almost all pubs and bars across the city in its later stages.
Madhur Verma, PRO, Delhi Police, says, “We have collaborated with around 40 restaurants for Bar Talk. The idea is to promote ‘Don’t Drink and Drive’ and popularize the Himmat app (the Delhi Police’s women’s safety app). This initiative will be launched on Friday at a restaurant in CP by the Commissioner of Police. We had a meeting with restaurateurs where we proposed this idea and they agreed. We have asked restaurants to put up LED screens and display the message of ‘Don’t Drink and Drive’. These screens will be prominently placed in restaurants so that everyone can see them.” He adds, “We will also tie up with a cab agency, and those who get drunk can take the cab instead of driving. They will also get vouchers and offers for hiring a cab. Besides, if a girl takes that cab and downloads our app, she can get additional offers. All this is being done only to ensure that people opt for safer options.”
‘We can collaborate for more such measures with the Delhi Police’
In its initial phase, most of the restaurants chosen are from Connaught Place, as CP outlets attract the most footfall these days. The restaurateurs here have welcomed the move and say that this initiative will also set an example about how restaurants and administration can work together to curb accidents due to drunk driving. “We already had 42-inches screens, on which we used to screen matches or promos, and now we’ll use the screens to display videos that will be given to us by the Delhi Police. We are also going to have some tent card-sized screens on different tables displaying these videos,” says restaurateur Priyank Sukhija, whose 20 restaurants in places like CP and Nehru Place are going to have these screens.
Restaurateur Umang Tiwari, who has 12 restaurants in Hauz Khas Village and CP, all of which will be playing the videos, says, “If installing these videos and screens helps in curbing drunk driving, then we completely support it. When people watch something time and again, at traffic signals and now also in restaurants, it creates an impact. We already had one video playing in our restaurants once in a day, which was like a short film informing people about the consequences of drunk driving.” The restaurants who have not been approached so far for the installation of screens say that the initiative is a welcome change, but the number of accidents due to drunk driving cannot go down by just these measures. “We need strict policing and people should know that they would be checked at every traffic signal and would be fined, when caught. We already have started training our staff on how to recognize guests who are drunk and not serve them liquor any further. We can come up with more plans and measures in collaboration with the Delhi Police,” says restaurateur Zorawar Kalra.
Gautam Bhirani, founder & CEO, BarTalk, says, “We are delighted that the Delhi Police has associated with BarTalk and used the platform to communicate with the right audience with a contextual message at the right place to encourage people to take taxis.”
‘It is a noble initiative, but who’s interested in watching these videos in restaurants?’
“After having two drinks, it really doesn’t matter what we are watching on a screen,” says Nitish Chhabra, a Noida-based software engineer. He adds, “People go to restaurants, bars and pubs to have fun. Who wants to watch these preachy videos? I don’t think this can be a solution to curb drunk driving. It might just put many people, like me, off.”
A west Delhi-based HR employee, who did not wish to be named, says, “I know of people who do not go to a restaurant when they know that that particular place will be screening some cricket or football match. So, why would they be interested in watching these videos? When I am going out with my friends, I am more interested in talking to them. These videos would be a distraction and I doubt if they would be even interesting to watch.”
