The decision to revoke licences for "cultural activities" in bars and restaurants in the state came after a series of surprise raids conducted by Anil Deshmukh, minister of state for cultural affairs. Apparently, Deshmukh's derring-do was the logical outcome of a cache of complaints protesting the congregation of unsavoury elements and shady activities passed off as "cultural dances" in the mushrooming ladies bars of the extended Bombay-Thane belt concentrated mainly in Mulund, Kandivli, Borivili, Malad,Bhandup, Vikhroli, Amernath, Ulhasnagar, Chembur and New Bombay residential areas. "Classical dance" had supposedly been twisted for the convenience of customers into movements completely divorced from the cultural scheme of things.