Пускай шайка стоит далеко, контрастный душ рядом.

Here пускай is related to пусть, and yes, one of its meanings is let:

• Пускай он войдёт. = Let him come in.

But in this sentence, it works more like a concessive word:

• Пускай X, Y = Even if / Granted that X, Y
• or X may be so, but Y

So the sentence has the sense of:

• Even if the tub/basin is far away, the contrast shower is nearby.
• or Let the tub be far away — the contrast shower is close.

This use is quite common in Russian: пусть / пускай can introduce something the speaker accepts, often before making a contrasting point.

Yes, шайка very often means gang in modern everyday Russian.

However, it also has another meaning: a small tub, basin, or wash tub, especially in a bathhouse context.

Because the sentence also contains контрастный душ (contrast shower), the bath-related meaning makes much more sense here. So in this sentence, шайка is almost certainly:

• a tub / basin / wash tub

This is a good example of how context decides meaning in Russian.

There are actually two different verbs:

1. стоить = to cost

   • Это стоит дорого. = It costs a lot.

2. стоять = to stand / be standing / be located

   • Стол стоит у окна. = The table is by the window.

Here the form is стоит, from стоять, not стоить.

So шайка стоит далеко means something like:

• the tub is standing far away
• more naturally in English: the tub is far away

Russian often uses стоять for objects that are physically placed somewhere.

Russian often omits the verb to be in the present tense.

So:

• контрастный душ рядом

literally is:

• contrast shower nearby

but it means:

• the contrast shower is nearby

This is completely normal Russian. Compare:

• Книга на столе. = The book is on the table.
• Магазин рядом. = The store is nearby.

So the missing is is not actually missing from a Russian point of view.

Because рядом can be used in two ways:

1. As an adverb meaning nearby / close

   • Магазин рядом. = The store is nearby.

2. As part of a prepositional phrase рядом с + instrumental

   • Магазин рядом с домом. = The store is next to the house.

In your sentence, it is the first type:

• контрастный душ рядом = the contrast shower is nearby

There is no specific object after it, so с is not needed.

Because душ is a masculine noun, nominative singular.

So the adjective must agree with it:

• masculine nominative singular: контрастный
• noun: душ

Hence:

• контрастный душ

If the noun were feminine, neuter, or plural, the adjective would change:

• контрастная ванна
• контрастное обливание
• контрастные процедуры

This is basic adjective-noun agreement in Russian.

Grammatically, yes. The structure is understandable:

• Пускай шайка стоит далеко, контрастный душ рядом.

It has a slightly compressed, contrastive feel, almost like:

• The tub may be far away, but the contrast shower is nearby.

Russian often allows fairly flexible word order, especially when the speaker is highlighting contrast.

A fuller version could be:

• Пускай шайка стоит далеко, зато контрастный душ рядом.

Adding зато makes the contrast clearer:

• Even if the tub is far away, at least the contrast shower is nearby.

So the original is possible, but it feels a bit terse or stylized.

Not necessarily, but many learners expect one because English often prefers an explicit connector.

Russian can simply place the two clauses side by side, especially when the contrast is clear from context.

Still, these are possible expanded versions:

• Пускай шайка стоит далеко, но контрастный душ рядом.
• Пускай шайка стоит далеко, зато контрастный душ рядом.

The difference:

• но = but
• зато = but / on the other hand / at least, often emphasizing compensation

In this sentence, зато would sound especially natural if the idea is: one thing is inconvenient, but another is a plus.

Далеко is an adverb meaning far.

It modifies стоит:

• шайка стоит далеко = the tub stands far away / is far away

Russian often uses adverbs like this with verbs of position:

• стоять далеко
• лежать близко
• находиться рядом

So далеко describes location, not the noun itself.

They are very close in meaning. In many contexts, they are interchangeable.

• Пусть
• Пускай

Both can mean:

• let
• may
• even if / granted that

The difference is mostly stylistic:

• пусть is usually more neutral and common
• пускай can sound a little more colloquial or expressive

So this sentence could also be:

• Пусть шайка стоит далеко, контрастный душ рядом.

That would mean essentially the same thing.

In isolation, yes, because that is a very common meaning of шайка.

But in this sentence, it would sound strange:

• Let the gang stand far away, the contrast shower is nearby.

That does not make much sense semantically. Because of контрастный душ, the bathhouse meaning (tub / basin) is strongly favored.

So a learner should remember:

• dictionary meaning does not always equal actual meaning in context

It is grammatical, but it sounds a bit unusual because of the combination of words and the compressed style.

A native speaker might say something more explicit depending on the situation, for example:

• Пусть шайка стоит далеко, зато контрастный душ рядом.
• Да, шайка далеко, зато рядом контрастный душ.

These sound a little more natural in ordinary speech because the contrast is marked more clearly.

So the original is understandable, but it may feel a bit elliptical or stylized rather than like the most everyday phrasing.

Шайка is in the nominative singular.

Why? Because it is the subject of the clause:

• шайка стоит далеко = the tub is far away

Its basic dictionary form is:

• шайка

You can tell it is nominative singular because:

• it matches the feminine singular subject form
• the verb стоит is singular, agreeing with it

So this is the normal subject form, not an object or a prepositional form.

Yes, absolutely.

• Контрастный душ стоит рядом.

That would mean the contrast shower is nearby.

The original sentence leaves out the repeated verb because Russian often omits repeated elements when they are easy to understand.

So:

• Пускай шайка стоит далеко, контрастный душ рядом.

is basically a shortened form of:

• Пускай шайка стоит далеко, контрастный душ стоит рядом.

This kind of omission is very common.

A few natural possibilities are:

• The tub may be far away, but the contrast shower is nearby.
• Even if the tub is far away, the contrast shower is close by.
• Let the tub be far away — the contrast shower is right here.

The best translation depends on tone, but the key idea is:

• concession + contrast

So the sentence is not just describing two locations; it is also implying a comparison between them.