Last week was dedicated to jazz, as singer Dana Gillestie had come in from London. Dana is a well-known name in jazz circles and has played with several renowned singers including Bob Dylan. Being a staunch devotee of Sathya Sai Baba, she comes to India quite regularly. On Thursday, she and fellow musicians from London, keyboard player Dino Baptist and guitarist Claire played at the Oberoi's Bayview Bar.

And helping them out was our very own Jules Fuller who ran into the trio the previous night and asked if he could join in. Quite a few music lovers came over to listen to their soulful tunes and drink some good wine. Among those spotted there were Sophiya Haque, Channel [V]'s Mel d'Souza, Dalip Tahil and Anish and Vineeta Trivedi. And everyone had just one thing to say -- that Dana and her friends should come back for a performance at the earliest.

Bowled over

And some lucky people did get a chance to hear Dana again when she played at `An Off-Beat Cafe' at Co., the BowlingCompany in Phenoix Mills. Though this new night-spot -- which promises to be different from our usual pubs -- hasn't opened yet, AD Singh decided to let a few of his friends sample his latest offering on Sunday night.

Dana was there to get everyone in the mood -- especially since her voice seems to have captivated the city's music lovers. The place was packed with people nibbling on calorie-laden cakes, drinking some wickedly-laced coffees and tapping their toes to great music.

It was so packed that at one stage, AD had to go behind the bar himself to serve his friends. And many of those who has attended the Bayview Bar performance came back for more including Jules who once again put his guitar to good use. Among those seen enjoying the music that night were Suneeta Rao, Kitu Gidwani, Atul and Vandana Kasbekar, Vikram Chandra, Kishen Mulchandani, Rahul Bose, Tariq Ansari and Sonia Garware. And judging by the turnout, An Off-Beat Cafe promises to be a happening spot as soon as its doors openout.

Sporty stuff

It was quite a week at the Co. as Mahesh Bhupati showed up to inaugurate the `Wall of Fame' at their sports bistro, Silly Point. And watching the Wimbledon winner kick off this wall which will showcase some of India's most talented sports personalities was Kapil Dev. The wall promises to become a Mecca for all sports lovers as it has a wide variety of books on the subject as well as India's first CD-Rom on cricket autographed by Sunil Gavaskar and a cricket bat signed by Azharuddin.

Book bash

If music and sports are not your thing then check-out Sunil Sethi's Indian Interiors, a picture-perfect book on the exquisite homes of the rich and famous shot by German photographer Deidi von Schaewen. The book has some truly inspiring pictures of everything from Maharajas' palaces to Goan shacks. In case you want an incentive to grab this book, this coffee-table collectors' item is available at the National Gallery of Modern Art for a discounted price of Rs 1,800. And tocelebrate the book, Czaee and Suketu Shah held a small and elegant dinner at their home on Saturday.

Seen admiring the book were Tariq and Anu Ansari, Rita Dhody, Czaee's sister Gauri Poohomull, Anand and Anuradha Mahindra (who also seemed enamoured by Czaee's beautiful home), Anuradha Tandon and Rahul Bose. And Czaee managed to hold a get-together that was as charming as the book, with everyone eating some great Gujarati food and winding up the evening with some serious dancing in the Shah living room which was literally transformed into a dance-floor.

And finally...

The closing of the 1900s has annoyed most of the city's party animals. But it's great news for all the pubs which are just bursting at their seams on Friday and Saturday nights, as a result. One of the most popular places in town is the bar at Indigo, which has to actually keep people out for lack of enough space to accommodate the crowd. Even during the week, it is packed with diners savouring some of the restaurant'sdelicacies.

This Wednesday, there seemed to a get-together of women journalists. Shobha De, Farzana Contractor, Bachi Karkaria and Rashmi Uday Singh all huddled in a corner for a quiet dinner. Now, we are sure the conversation at this table would make very interesting copy!