City Secrets – Islamic Volleyball at Hazrat Nizamuddin General by The Delhi Walla - August 5, 20075 GO STRAIGHT TO CITY CLASSIFIEDS & CITY EVENTSGO STRAIGHT TO MORE STORIESContact mayankaustensoofi@gmail.com for ad enquiries.Playing the game with a halaal touch.[Text and pictures by Mayank Austen Soofi]Besides its Sufi shrine, Thursday qawwalis, and Karim restaurant, Hazrat Nizamuddin has another attraction – Islamic Volleyball. Each evening young Muslim men collect in an open courtyard called Urs Mahal to play this American game. Many of these players have long wiry black beard; some are clean shaven with chocolate looks; all have strong arms, powerful fists, quick feet, and deep voices.Their sports attire is most unusual. Most are dressed in shalwar-kurtas; few prefer lungis; and only one man, Raahat, likes to show off his Salman Khanisque body in blue-colored jeans and body-hugging
City Landmarks – A. Godin & Co. Landmarks by The Delhi Walla - August 5, 2007January 4, 20115 Delhi’s legendary piano shop. [Text and pictures by Mayank Austen Soofi] The high ceiling of this charming piano shop seems overwhelmed with the weight of history. Situated at the desolate end of the Regal Cinema building, A. Godin & Co. was established in Quetta in 1900. The founder Celiano Godin, a 25-year-old who played both piano and violin, later opened branches in Bombay, Calcutta, Mussoorie, and Delhi. Opened originally at Kashmiri Gate in 1940, the Delhi store rapidly earned its prestige. By the time Lord Mountbatten arrived seven years later to cut a bleeding India into pieces, Goldin & Co was reputed enough to be chosen as the official tuner for his pianos. But the partition came with its complications – the British