Standing with arms folded at the corner of the dance floor, wearing an all-black outfit, Mehrunnisha Shokat Ali works as a female bouncer at Social Watering Hole in Hauz Khas Village, Delhi.  The 30 year old female bouncer has worked for Bollywood security detail with Priyanka Chopra, Preity Zinta and Vidya Balan.

She has been into the occupation for nearly a decade and from the past 3 years; she is working a 10-hour night shift at Social, a restaurant and club. She is known for breaking up bar fights and exposing illegal drugs. She also keeps a check on ladies at the club.

Social’s owner Riyaaz Amlani says, “We decided to employ women to make sure that women customers too felt safe, and we found a great match in Mehrunnisha. She was fierce and determined, and the rest is history.”

She is from a large Muslim family in the northern family town of Saranpur (200 kms from Delhi). Earlier she wanted to be a police officer, but her father didn’t favor her thought. Even her education after primary school was allowed after insistence of her mother.

But after her father’s stock market loss, the college girl decided to take charge of her house with parents, two sisters and her elder sister’s 3 children besides herself.

“Several times my brother has asked me, what sort of a job is this? But this does not affect me, because my mother and father have faith and confidence in me, and I know I am not doing anything wrong. I am very proud of what I do, it’s not an easy job, taking care of people, especially women in a club, is a very big responsibility.”

Her younger sister, Tarannum, 27, also works as a bouncer at a bar just 5- minutes walk from The Social. The sisters together earn Rs 30,000 a month. They spend an hour at gym each day to build their strength and even work though holidays.

One regular patron at Social, Nikita Lamba says, “If I come here and I see a female bouncer, I feel a lot safer. And Mehrunnisha is pretty kick-ass. She is good at what she does.”