Magic Formula

For even those of us who don’t follow motorsports closely,it’s hard to ignore the significance of F1 in India. To be part of a historic weekend,I hoofed it to Greater Noida two hours away from where I live,in the dead of the night. Besides the races,weekend revelry was also meticulously planned out at the LAP Lounge,a humongous nightclub created virtually overnight by the inimitable set designer Sumant Jayakrishnan. The club,spread over two levels is a hangout for F1 fans once the races are over. (Charges starting at Rs 12,000 per person. LAP is a popular nightspot,co-owned by Arjun Rampal and AD Singh at Delhi’s Samrat Hotel).

The Metallica concert being cancelled and vandalised and reports of stray dogs on the tracks were mild dampeners,at least once you reached LAP Lounge. Large enough to host 20,000 partygoers,the venue was dazzling yet understated. Flowers and dim fluorescent lights hung from the ceiling,the walls were decorated with large paintings of erstwhile Indian royalty,while the resplendent red velvet carpet at the entrance made all guests feel like they were heading to the Oscars. Of course,the celebrity caste system in international nightclubs applied here as well: the junta was restricted to the ground level,while at the level above,the stars (Rampal,Sussanne Roshan,Dino Morea) mingled with an assortment of Delhi socialites. At midnight,Bernie Ecclestone cut a three-tier birthday cake,complete with a vertical racing car,surrounded by a bevy of clapping,Eastern European beauties and Rampal uncorking champagne. Trapeze artists suddenly descended from nowhere,hanging upside down on satin ropes,and hooded pole dancers gyrated to the tunes of DJ Roger Sanchez. A man in a robot suit (I thought he was from Ra.One) danced to his own lazer show.

This is not Noida. It was surreal,and briefly,we were all transported to

St Tropez,minus the beach and sea breeze. With the debacle of the Commonwealth Games fresh in our memories,nobody would bet on smooth sailing at the Indian F1,yet,at least,the partying bit (a very important component of F1) was extremely well-handled. The ambience was right; India’s highrollers were dancing into the night in a sports complex,built literally in the middle of nowhere. With thousands of motorsport fans across the world,there is enormous revenue to be generated from hosting a single F1 race. But fans don’t come just for the racing,they come for the whole package of shopping,entertainment,nightlife and food. And safety. It’s yet another opportunity to showcase Delhi and establish our place among the greatest cities of the world. Do we have it in us to handle it right,for once?

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