First Day, Last Show

If there were a tape on the making of Trilogy, Mumbai’s swanky new nightspot, it would feature interior designers mulling over a psychedelic ceiling as if it were the Sistine chapel; champagne flutes magically growing to reach waist-high; and PR executives auditioning a bevy of tall, beautiful people to cast for  the launch party. The result: a super sexy second production by the Tham brothers (of Henry Tham), which launched on Wednesday with a slick premiere, ending with rave reviews from (most of the) glittering crowd. But let’s not get ahead of the story.

Show Reel

Trilogy, housed inside Juhu’s Hotel Sea Princess, opens with a red carpet and a plush elevator that leads up to 4,000 square feet of space split between two levels, both of which afford a great sea view. Unfortunately, the first floor, starring a wooden bar (heavily inspired by Henry Tham), lounge area, tacky bronze chairs and cool Lego-like walls, fails to impress.

Better direction comes from a flight of ruby red stairs (remarkably hard to navigate after three shots) that are scattered with mini lounges where V-I-Ps S-I-P from abovementioned giant glasses. These lead to a dance floor, vibrant bar and hotbox smoking room with ocean view. Best of all, though, is the ceiling, where sugar cube-like installations change colour with the David Guetta-Black Eyed Peas music. Fun!

You Can Leave Your Hat On

And now that we’re done stripping Trilogy down to every last detail, commending and critiquing, let's get to the part that really matters – the drinks. Here, bartenders in fedoras serve up bright cocktails with an infectious energy. We suggest you stick to the basics, though – mojitos and martinis are yum, but a “make me your best drink” request yielded a disappointingly banal black currant something. And at Rs 300 a beer and Rs 700 for a large spirit, expect to run up a decently hefty tab.

If you’ve eaten at Henry Tham, you’ll know to order the sushi from the Pan-Asian bar menu. We also loved batter fried chicken, but the prawns were overdone with garlic.

End Credit

By the time the full length feature of Trilogy ran its course, drinks were spilled, stars zoomed in, dancers moved in high speed and flaws eventually grew out of focus. We would definitely come back for a rerun because even though it’s not perfect, this is a fun club, the kind that is much required this side of the Sea Link.

Getting there: Trilogy, Hotel Sea Princess, Juhu Tara Road, Santracruz (W), call 26469500, Rs 650 for a cocktail, Rs 300 for beer, Rs 12,000 for a bottle of Moet (inclusive of taxes).