Delhi's Lair named best bar in India; four other Indian bars featured in Asia's 50 Best Bars 2025 list
Lair, New Delhi (#8)
From a speakeasy tucked inside Vasant Vihar comes the country's most hyped cocktail destination. Lair isn't just about stylish design (think monochrome concrete and sharp glass cuts), it's about drink innovation that has the rest of Asia watching closely. Founders Jairaj Singh Solanki and Dhruv Raj Vij conceptualised Lair in 2019, survived the pandemic, and turned it into a full-blown trendsetter by 2025. Ever seen edible paint on glassware? Or tasted a Picante before it was cool? That's Lair's legacy. It's the kind of place where cocktails are concept art, not just concoctions.
SOKA, Bengaluru (#28)
Hidden away in a snug 38-seater space with leather couches and Goan art installations, SOKA takes a poetic approach to cocktails. Its one-page menu is deceptively simple, because the storytelling happens in your glass. Helmed by the team behind Jamming Goat in Goa, Chef Sombir Choudhary and bartender Avinash Kapoli, envision SOKA showcases the city's stories and secrets to both longtime residents and new entrants through an assortment of story-centric cocktails. Think clarified jasmine, sous-vided bananas, and a piquant tequila cocktail named Mofo Don that glows pink thanks to red cabbage juice from a vendor in Russell Market. This is not your average pub, it's Bangalore, bottled.
Boilermaker, Goa (#30)
At Boilermaker, Goa's craft beer and cocktail powerhouses collide to create a bar that's industrial in vibe but pure soul in its pours. Co-founded by Pankaj Balachandran and Nakul Bhonsle, this joint is part welder, part wizard. The drink menu is split into Smashables, Sessionables, and Shorties — each one more fun than the last. Try Papa Issues, a riot of rum, papaya, and Sichuan pepper. Or Chotu Garibaldi, a short but deadly mix of Campari and fresh orange. Who needs a story when the flavour slaps this hard?
ZLB23 at The Leela Palace, Bengaluru (#31)
ZLB23 is part Prohibition-era New York, part Kyoto minimalism, and all heart. Hidden behind a secret door at The Leela Palace, this ultra-chic bar serves Shiso Negronis, smoky Old-Fashioneds, and a heady dose of live jazz. Every sip here feels like a secret well kept, and that's the point. Whether it's a moody jazz night or a global bar takeover, ZLB23 brings intimacy and intrigue back to Bengaluru nightlife.
Spirit Forward, Bengaluru (#37)
This Lavelle Road stunner is the kind of place where ice cubes get stamped, olives are blue cheese-stuffed, and the gin martini is prediluted and poured icy from the bottle. Spirit Forward was crafted by longtime F&B insiders with a knack for magic behind the bar. The Southern Star, their tequila-based crowd-favourite, is fermented with guava, plum, and jalapeno for 36 hours before being shaken to silken perfection. One sip and you'll understand why this bar just raced into the global spotlight.
The ones that just missed the cut
The excitement didn't stop at 50. Four more Indian bars made it to the extended 51–100 list: Goa's Bar Outrigger (#55), Delhi's beloved Sidecar (#62), Mumbai's legendary Bombay Canteen (#69), and Hideaway in Goa (#94).
So whether you're beach-bound or city-hopping, this year's Asia's 50 Best Bars proves one thing — India isn't just catching up to the cocktail world, it's raising the bar, quite literally.
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
India Today
25 minutes ago
- India Today
Bengal CM Mamata Banerjee kickstarts 134th Durand Cup with grand ceremony
West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee inaugurated the historic 134th edition of the Durand Cup, Asia's oldest football tournament, with a spectacular opening ceremony at Kolkata's Salt Lake Stadium. This year's event comes with the prize money being increased almost three times, with the winners taking home a whopping 3 crore who traditionally launches this iconic tournament, was back this year after missing season's event due to official duties in Delhi. She formally kicked off the tournament by taking a symbolic shot at the ball, and joined at the event by Sports Minister Aroop Biswas, Fire Minister Sujit Bose, and Minister of State for Sports Manoj Tiwary, along with senior Indian Army West Bengal Chief Minister spoke about the rich history of the Durand Cup, one of the oldest football tournaments in the world, which was first held in 1888. Banerjee also said she was proud to see four teams from Kolkata take part in the tournament this year. 'Especially since it began in Bengal, and this time, four teams from Bengal are participating, we are proud,' she however, didn't entertain any questions about the Indian Super League, which has been put on hold at the moment. 'Please don't ask me about that here. This is not the right place.'The opening ceremony saw a flypast by three Indian army helicopters, and also featured dancers performing to a song written by Mamata Banerjee herself. Various army divisions showcased diverse dance forms like Bhangra, Rabindra Nritya, and the Khukuri dance during the ceremony as well. A total of 24 teams will take part in the tournament this year, along with two teams from Nepal and Malaysia. The final of the tournament will take place on August 23 Durand Cup 2025: Teams and groupsGroup A: East Bengal FC, Indian Air Force FT, Namdhari FC, South United FCGroup B: Mohun Bagan Super Giant, Mohammedan SC, Diamond Harbour FC, Border Security Force FTGroup C: Jamshedpur FC, Tribhuvan Army FT, Indian Army FT, 1 Ladakh FCGroup D: Punjab FC, ITBP FT, Karbi Anglong Morning Star FC, Bodoland FCGroup E: Shillong Lajong FC, NorthEast United FC, Malaysian Armed Forces, Rangdajied United FCGroup F: TRAU FC, NEROCA FC, Real Kashmir FC, Indian Navy FT- Ends
Hindustan Times
30 minutes ago
- Hindustan Times
Review: Muslim Identity in Hindi Cinema by Mohammad Asim Siddiqui
The pervasive influence of new information and communication technology has transformed culture, literature, the fine arts, and other forms of entertainment into powerful transnational productions. Now, cinema serves as a reflective mirror to our rapidly evolving social landscape, illuminating and informing us about significant societal shifts. Ranveer Singh as Khilji in Padmavat. 'An unprecedented surge in structuring films on themes related to Muslim rulers reveals a sense of naivety on the part of the directors, who seem to believe that retelling the past or the imagined past settles the question of cultural identity.' (Film still) Films with their vivid characterisation, intriguing visuals, and gripping storylines transcend fantasies of desire and reveal what lies beneath the vicissitudes of life. Cinema appears to be the site of every twist in collective life, upending our settled understanding of lived experience. The postmodern era has given rise to transformational cinema, queer cinema, and politically charged films that lend a voice to subcultures, fostering a sense of empathy and inclusivity. 185pp, ₹3145; Routledge The widely admired portrayal of fervent nationalism has given rise to a new notion, 'cine patriotism,' which is essentially a stagnant concept. It resonates with Bollywood, which often constructs identity within a particular national and religious context. Identity is a slippery and multilayered concept, and when it pertains to those people who, in Franz Fanon's vivid phrase, are without any anchor, without horizon, and colourless, it becomes more complex. For Indian cinema, national identity can only be constructed if it is contrasted with a less-than-desirable, if not loathsome, other. It is the other's ghostly presence that goes well with the gullible audience. In cinematographic projection, the other is the Muslim, who is fictionalised and plays the assumed role. The narrative and visuals fix him in violence, hostility, and aggression. His story is constructed through fantasy, myth and falsification, which leaves him experiencing himself as the other. The portrayal is done through two vectors – cultural difference and social rupture. Negotiation of identity among Muslims remains a shifting motif, serving as a potential tool for othering by contemporary Hindi cinema. Right now, this is how our film industry treats the second-largest Muslim population in the world. How does the expropriation of cultural and religious identity hinder the understanding of a community? Indian cinema addresses this by focusing on a simplified and often distorted representation that fails to capture the complexity of identity. An unprecedented surge in structuring films on themes related to Muslim rulers reveals a sense of naivety on the part of the directors, who believe that retelling the past or the imagined past settles the question of cultural identity. Pran and Amitabh Bachchan in Zanjeer. 'The issue of the Muslim gangster is explored in the fourth chapter, which provides a close reading of Zanjeer (1973), Angaar (1992), and numerous other films.' (Film still) The diacritics of cinematic aporia call for an objective delineation and insightful analysis, and it is what Asim Siddiqui's recently published book, Muslim Identity in Hindi Cinema does with academic rigour. The author rightly considers cinema a site of hybridity, diversity, and splitting, where relations, assimilations, and syncretizations are negotiated and renegotiated. Hindi films also did this in the portrayal of Muslim identity over the last eight decades. Now, however, the situation has changed. This book attempts to analyse 'how the inclusive vision presented in films like Mughal-e Azam (1960) has been replaced by a Hindutva vision in many films using history as a backdrop where Muslims appear in the image of the other.' Comprising six terse and incisive chapters, the book provides a panoramic yet invigorating view of the representation of Muslims in new social settings and idioms. Siddiqui discovers, excavates and discusses the changing perception of Muslim identity from the historical films of the 1940s down to the recent movies that perpetuate stereotypical notions of Muslim identity. With critical acuity and social and cultural sensitivity, he unravels the representation of global Muslim identity in a post–9/11 world and emphasises the need for a more nuanced understanding. The first chapter, From History to Circus: Politics of Genre and Muslims' Representation in Hindi Films enumerates historical, political, social and cultural aspects of Muslim identity, and discusses issues relating to Partition, to Muslims into a secular nation, interreligious marriages, ever growing communalism, militancy in Kashmir, and the subjugation of Muslim women. The second chapter goes well beyond the paraphrasing of themes and cursory interpretation of visuals, costumes, lyrics, music, and sound effects. The author sensitively reads the films of Raja Kumar Hirani and Zoya Akhtar, where the predictable markers of identity hardly work. A dispassionate analysis is presented in the third chapter, which examines the portrayal of Hindu-Muslim hostility and violence in films. Author Mohammad Asim Siddiqui (Courtesy the subject) The issue of the Muslim gangster is explored in the fourth chapter, which provides a close reading of Zanjeer (1973), Angaar (1992), and numerous other films. The figure of the gangster has now been replaced with that of a terrorist and has produced the terrorist genre of Hindi films. The author takes pains in chewing over the globalisation of terror and the setting of terrorist films in Afghanistan, Turkey and London. The last chapter provides a panoramic view of the representation of Muslim women characters in Hindi cinema. 'Muslim women also appear in many interreligious romances where the man usually happens to be a Hindu and the girl a Muslim,' Siddiqui correctly points out, adding that the pattern 'guided by the demands of political correctness and market forces, reveals deep-rooted sexual anxiety about protecting and preserving women from defilement.' In sum, the book presents an insightful and multilayered analysis of the representational aspects of Hindi cinema. Shafey Kidwai, a bilingual critic, is the director of Sir Syed Academy, Aligarh Muslim University.
News18
37 minutes ago
- News18
Addinath Kothare Confirms Playing Bharat In Ramayana: 'It's The Biggest Film Made On Indian Soil'
Last Updated: Addinath Kothare says he feels blessed to play Bharat in Ramayana, calling it the biggest Indian film ever made and lauding its vision, scale and writing. Addinath Kothare is thrilled to be a part of Nitesh Tiwari's Ramayana, a film he believes is among the biggest projects ever made in Indian cinema. The actor, who will portray Bharat, Lord Ram's devoted brother, expressed his deep gratitude for the opportunity and praised the film's scale, vision, and writing. Sharing how special the film is to him, Addinath told Bollywood Hungama, 'It's a blessing yaar. It's the biggest film made on Indian soil. It's also one of the biggest films made globally today. To be a part of it, I am truly indebted to Mukesh Chhabra. He is the man who cast me and, of course, Nitesh sir for choosing me for the character of Bharat. And also Namit Malhotra sir who believed in me and entrusted me with such a big responsibility." For those unfamiliar with the epic, Bharat is one of the four brothers of Lord Ram, known for his unwavering loyalty and selflessness. Addinath noted that the scale and ambition of Ramayana are unlike anything he's seen before. Impressed by the makers' dedication, the actor revealed, 'They are amazingly clear of what their vision is. They are absolutely well-planned. They have spent almost 10 years in the pre-production of this project. Nitesh sir started the journey of scripting Ramayana since 2016 or 17 something. Also, Namit sir, Prime Focus and Nitesh sir have been working on the VFX and the pre-production started even before the lockdown, I think." Calling the film a masterclass in production planning, Addinath added, 'It's one of the most well-planned cinema on Indian soil, I think. We are fortunate enough to witness this from close quarters. And I am really fortunate to have got this opportunity in such a big film, not just as an actor, filmmaker, human being, but just to get to witness this humongous scale of film production. No film school can teach you this." He also revealed that the script itself blew him away. 'I was blown away when I heard the screenplay. Now, the display, production value, VFX and detailing; all this is just a cherry on the cake. It is one of the finest scripts I have read, to be honest." Ramayana stars Ranbir Kapoor as Lord Ram, Sai Pallavi as Sita, Ravie Dubey as Lakshman and Sunny Deol as Hanuman. First Published: July 24, 2025, 00:42 IST Disclaimer: Comments reflect users' views, not News18's. Please keep discussions respectful and constructive. Abusive, defamatory, or illegal comments will be removed. News18 may disable any comment at its discretion. By posting, you agree to our Terms of Use and Privacy Policy.
