India, Jan. 5 -- By 10pm on New Year's Eve, it was clear that the night ahead would be brutal for the police as Gurugram spilt beyond celebration into disorder. Roads were gridlocked, pavements became extensions of clubs, and intoxicated crowds filled nearly every stretch, with people laughing too loudly, arguing incoherently, or insisting they were "absolutely fine". They were not.

Moving through Golf Course Road, Sector 29, and later Old Delhi Road, the city felt fragile. Phones had died, cab apps collapsed under demand, and people lost friends, directions, and basic coordination. Celebration tipped into vulnerability, shrinking the margin for safety to almost nothing.

Amid this chaos, the police remained calm despite being outnumbere...