It was the practice of the Europeans to reproduce, as far as possible, in their settlements and colonies abroad the typical social features of their national lives. The Portuguese brought the wine restaurant, the French set up the cafe stretching often to the pavement and the British introduced social clubs in India.

The British social culture, as prevalent in their homes and during formal occasions, sports and entertainment of the 18th Century crystalised around their clubs in India in the 19th Century and survived till the end of the Raj. The club which was a singularly male rendezvous in Britain was suitably modified for India and was perhaps more British than the most sophisticated British institutions. Most of the British clubs in India specialised in specific games or sports but were not exclusively or primarily "playing club". A blend of sports and social activities was a feature of most of their clubs, particularly smaller military stations. One had to belong to a club before one could play a game. It was considered obligatory to belong to a club even if one could not go there regularly due to constraints of service conditions. Yet there were many who regarded a visit to the club every evening a part of their duty. Getting together for games and exercise, and more importantly, for gossip and talks was an essential part of British lifestyle in India.

The club was also a social centre for civil and military personnel. It had a special appeal to a large number of British officers in India who were by force of circumstances separated from their wives and families for long periods. Bound by common fortunes in an alien country and because of their distrust and attitude towards the locals, they naturally leaned on one another for survival. These clubs were a compensation that alleviated the pain of loneliness and helped solve through relaxed conversation many a knotty problem, particularly of bachelors and separated officers who had a distaste for housekeeping.

Membership to British clubs in pre-Independence India was decided almost wholly by occupation and in big cities, discrimination by status was a rigid practice. In smaller towns it was relaxed in certain clubs for a variety of reasons but mainly for financial.

Even if one did not feel like becoming a member of such clubs, it was unwise not to be one, if one could. "If you didn't belong to a club, you were an outcaste" said General Savory who later became the Adjutant General in Army Headquarters in New Delhi. "Some people, however, refused to accept all such social norms and refused to belong to any club. Intellectuals, for example, would rather spend their evenings in study. Club going to them was a waste of time. Either you were a rebel or rather a courageous rebel who didn’t belong to a club or else you were a social outcaste who wanted to belong to a club but couldn't get in", he added. "The issue of Indian membership to British clubs almost split the Europeans", General Savory maintained, "one of the greatest mistakes the British ever made was to frown upon Indians becoming members to their clubs. Some clubs would not allow Indians to be members, as it was laid down in their club constitution. When one considers that it was not every Englishman who came to India, who came out of the top drawer, and there were in India some of the most highly bred, cultivated and educated men in the world, to keep them out and allow the Englishmen in was nonsense."

The controversy over Indian membership centred around colour-bar. It began towards the end of the first World War and continued well into the second World War. Another objection was that even if Indians were allowed to join the British clubs, their female folks would stay away because of purdah and even if they would come they would not mix with club members without a veil. The British could not accept this.

The Indianisation of both the civil and military services made it even more difficult for most of the British clubs to preserve their exclusiveness. Two well-known examples are the Wellingdon Club of Bombay and the Calcutta Club. In some cities, mixed clubs attempted to by-pass this problem. Elsewhere, a head-on clash became inevitable and reached a crisis point during the second World War. The President of the Madras Club observed, "we had admitted all European officers as temporary members but the General Commanding, Madras District said that he would not allow European officers to become members unless it was agreed to allow Indian officers also''. The commercial elements out-voted the officials by a very small majority and it was decided to still refuse to admit Indians as members. The result was that the European offices were also not admitted under the order of the General. Other attempts to break the bar were, however, more successful. General Savory recalls, "I had an officer in my Regiment who had been a cadet at the Indian Military Academy under me. I put him up for the club and they turned him down. I put the club out of bounds to all my officers from that minute. Eventually, this officer was allowed to become a member of the club".

Games, particularly tennis, golf, cricket and riding, especially where a cavalry unit was located, were very popular. Most clubs had billiard and bridge rooms and usually a very good library, well-stocked with newspapers and magazines from England. Mornings were exclusively for the ladies and men could attend clubs only on Sunday mornings. On almost any evening, social life started with drinks at the bar. People talked about happenings of the day, Shikar and quite a lot of "shop". Politics were not discussed particularly if Indians were present. The ladies talked about servants, children, shopping and general gossip. Gossip of the most personal kind was, however, kept for their intimate little dinner parties among a group of close friends. On certain evenings, there was music usually provided by one of the military bands and on Saturday nights there was dancing. Christmas and New Year evenings had special programme for children and for late night dancing.

The expression Koi Hai (is anybody there?) is believed to have originated in such clubs, when British members had to call for the butler. It came to be used in Officers' Messes and even in bungalows for calling a servant. Initially, the British members of clubs were not in favour of engaging and allowing Indian butlers, with a few exceptions as a special case, to their clubs. The resistance gradually softened and Indian servants became the mainstay of club service.

After Independence, the void in clubs created by the departure of the British was filled with great enthusiasm by civil and military officers. The bar and Sunday luncheons became quite popular and on Saturday evenings the dance floors were packed. The initial enthusiasm by officers gradually subsided and initial interest in these clubs of Indian officers and their invitees veered to sports and games, both indoor and outdoor. The nouveau riche, who began to monopolise these clubs for their new-found social life, patronised the bar with their associates. They preferred entertaining a guest or a friend in a club and the old Indian practice of entertaining at home gradually became a rare occasion.