Moroccon coffee, anyone? Cafe evenings at Mocha

How exclusive can a coffee parlour get? Check out Mocha, a speciality coffee and gourmet desserts café. Modelled after the Quaveh Khaneh (coffee houses) of Morocco and Turkey, individual teakwood pieces, chess tables and stained glass lamps lend to the Mediterranean ambience. A variety of rare coffees like the Jamaican Blue Mountain, Yemeni Mocha, Sumatra Mandheling and Indian Monsoon Malabar add up. The desserts seem more familiar in comparison: Sorbets, Flans, Crème Brulees and Tiramisu. Costs range from Rs 30 upwards for coffee and Rs 75 upwards for dessert. At 82, Nagin Mahal, Veer Nariman Road, Churchgate, Mumbai-20. Call (022) 230-1368.

DELHI
Clothes Store

The Indian retail industry has competition. UK clothing major Marks and Spencer is now in India, at Ansal Plaza in Delhi and at Crossroads in Mumbai. For starters, the stores will sell a range of adult clothing-womenswear (suits, lingerie), menswear (classic suits, jackets, trousers) and toiletries. Richard Sweet, head of the international franchise group for Marks and Spencer, says the clothes, as in the parent store, will be sourced from around the world.

The 7,000 sq.ft Marks and Spencer store at Ansal Plaza in Delhi

An understated fashion show-which began fashionably late-at the residence of the British high commissioner last week marked the Delhi launch. Marks and Spencer, along with its India partner Planet Sports, have the task of understanding the Indian market and competitive pricing. Check the price tags: a pair of dark indigo jeans with white stretch lycra comes for Rs 2,350, a perfect stretch white cotton shirt costs Rs 2,758. The lingerie looks promising: satin nightwear, Gabriella lace lingerie bras and knickers. Call (011) 628-1476/84/85.

-Contributed by Natasha Israni and Methil Renuka

Indo-Pakistani relations will now find mention in Leicester

Much research has been done on the decolonisation of 1947, the Partition and the tense security climate but the study of the tumultuous relations between India and Pakistan has been rare in western academia. Seeking to bridge this gap, the University of Leicester has set up the Institute for the Study of Indo-Pakistan Relations. Brainchild of Professor Richard Bonney, INPAREL has set itself the ambitious task of being a "non-partisan, non-profit-making academic institute, dedicated to research, education and policy initiatives". It will serve as a platform where leading lights of the subcontinent could meet and interact. The institute aspires to improve relations between the two countries by encouraging the exchange of ideas and the development of policies and projects. It also aims at raising the level of public understanding through papers and books, conferences and lectures. Among the first initiatives is to organise seminars and conferences of UK-based South Asia experts and academics in various universities; and publish papers on key themes on the India-Pakistan relationship. "There is so much potential for economy and growth if peace prevails between the two countries," says Bonney.

-Prasun Sonwalkar