Bengaluru gets its first 'rage room' to vent spleen

Experts say the aggressive way of dealing with stress leads to more anger and gives only temporary happiness

NT Correspondent

Bengaluru: Bengaluru's first rage room is open for business. To help those in distress to vent their anger physically, the space offers glass items and metal objects among other materials to break.

The rage room, located in Basavanagudi, has been the initiative of Ananya Shetty, a 23-year-old digital marketer from IIT Madras. Ananya said that one night late at around 2:30 she felt very low. It was then that a friend suggested that she would feel much better if she broke a few things. That's when she started looking for a rage room in the city. But when she could not find any, it prompted her to start one by herself.

Ananya explains that in metropolitan cities like Bengaluru space is limited and the freedom to express one’s frustration in a healthy fashion is ever-decreasing. While the idea of rage rooms is a huge success in countries like the US and UK, why not in India, she said. The advantages of a rage room have been up for debate. Experts have claimed that the aggressive way of dealing with stress leads to more anger.

The physical release in the rage room only leads to a temporary feeling of happiness due to the adrenaline rush. But repeated episodes of the same activity may lead to addictive behaviour, with the mind blurring the difference between accepted and unaccepted anger. The idea of a rage room first emerged in Japan in 2008 when the economy was undergoing a recession, resulting in increased levels of stress among workers.

After the idea gained currency, the concept spread worldwide. The rage room in the city began functioning on February 4 and only on its second day had its slots fully booked. The space offers a wide range of materials to be destroyed – from washing machines, and fridges to beer bottles and bricks.