Hindu kitsch in times of unprecedented prosperity.[Text by Gaurav Sood; picture by Akshardham temple authority]The huge red sandstone and marble monument, visible from the nearby highway, stands alone, proud, and out of place. The local road abutting the walled complex has a few informal ‘check points’ where men in plain clothes check cars. As our Maruti Zen lurches into the ‘complex’, the true enormity of the ‘operation’ – the beehive of activity that keeps this place running – becomes clear. The complex employs at least a few hundred people (almost all men), mostly young, eager, full of self importance, and too prone to giving directions where none are necessary. The job of frisking visitors, shepherding them through metal detectors, collecting

GO STRAIGHT TO CITY CLASSIFIEDS & CITY EVENTSGO STRAIGHT TO MORE STORIESContact mayankaustensoofi@gmail.com for ad enquiries.The place where mountain people get their song and dance.[Text and picture by Mayank Austen Soofi]The smoggy ITO crossing can hardly be mistaken for the breezy Mall Road of Mussoorie. But curiously, it is here that the natives of Kumaon and Garhwal presently residing in Delhi head for their music fix. All thanks to four rickety stalls specializing in Garhwali and Kumaoni music videos.These stalls are a treasure-trove for Uttaranchali music lovers. (Uttaranchal is a tiny Himalays province north of Delhi and primarily consist of two regions of Garhwal and Kumaon.) About 300 VCDs, audio CDs, and cassettes fly off their shelves daily. Although there

GO STRAIGHT TO CITY CLASSIFIEDS & CITY EVENTSGO STRAIGHT TO MORE STORIESContact mayankaustensoofi@gmail.com for ad enquiries.A Delhi Walla having a passion for Pakistan.[Text by G V Krishnan; picture by Rajesh Thakur; the author is a retired Times of India journalist and host the blogs Recycled Writings, My Take by GVK, and Mysore Blog Park. This story was originally published in Desicritic.]'Who is this bloke?'. I wondered, on reading about his blog - Pakistan Paindabad - making waves. Mayank Austen Soofi. The name didn't mean a thing to me till then. And then there was this mail from fellow Desicritic and friend Tanay, recalling Mayank's post at Desicritics one year back, about his visit to Lahore's Heera Mandi. "I was able

GO STRAIGHT TO CITY CLASSIFIEDS & CITY EVENTSGO STRAIGHT TO MORE STORIESContact mayankaustensoofi@gmail.com for ad enquiries.Investigating Delhi's quizzing scene.[Text and pictures by Mayank Austen Soofi]One summer evening last year, five members of an endangered species - three Mastermind India participants, a University Challenge contestant, and a school quizzer - met over Java at SDA Market's Barista. Their mood was grim. Delhi boy Siddhartha Basu, India's top quizmaster, was preparing to abandon the city to produce glamorous TV game shows in Mumbai. The tribe was on the verge of extinction. The capital was losing out to quiz shows from Hyderabad, Chennai, and Coimbatore. Worried but resolute, these five wise men took matter's in their own hands. Kutub Quizzers was born. The

GO STRAIGHT TO CITY CLASSIFIEDS & CITY EVENTSGO STRAIGHT TO MORE STORIESContact mayankaustensoofi@gmail.com for ad enquiries.Eyewitness account of the terror tragedy in the courtyard of Khawaja Gharib Nawaz.[Text by Sufi Salman Chishty; picture by Mayank Austen Soofi. The author lives in Ajmer; his picture was taken at Hazrat Nzamuddin.][Publisher’s note: Ajmer is 7-hour-long train journey away from Delhi. But what happened in the sufi shrine there cannot be ignored. It can happen again – in Delhi's Hazrat Nizamuddin’s dargah.]The terrorist attack on the shrine of Khwaja Gharib Nawaz in Ajmer has shaken all of us very deeply. 2 devotees were killed and 17 were injured. Our house, Chishty Manzil, is opposite the blessed Dargah. The balcony gives a very clear

GO STRAIGHT TO CITY CLASSIFIEDS & CITY EVENTSGO STRAIGHT TO MORE STORIESContact mayankaustensoofi@gmail.com for ad enquiries.Exclusive interview with New Age Guru Deepak Chopra. He was in town to promote his new book "Buddha: A Story of Enlightenment". [Interview and pictures by Mayank Austen Soofi]Was Bhagwan Buddha a God?God is the highest instinct to know oneself. In that sense Buddha is a God. So can you if you reach that level of consciousness.Your book "Life After Death" was described as "a must read for everyone who will die". "Buddha" has been written for what kind of people?This is a book for those interested in secular spirituality and willing to move beyond ideologies and dogma.What do you think Buddha would feel if

The Capital musician. [Picture and text by Mayank Austen Soofi] Next time your hear Rag Pahari while crossing the N-Block subway at Connaught Place, sit down on the stairs and let your heart be moved by Balbir Kumar's melancholic melodies. Mr. Kumar is an extraordinary bansuri player, maker and seller. He plays best when drunk with Johnny Walker Red Label. He is a kind person and is usually ready to play your favroite tunes. Apart from his T-series and Tips albums, Mr. Kumar has performed, for a fee, in cities like Munich and Amsterdam. Luckily, this CP subway remains his favorite where he sits all day long playing for free. Often surrounded by closet flutists– IT engineers, doctors and CAs – trying to learn

GO STRAIGHT TO CITY CLASSIFIEDS & CITY EVENTSGO STRAIGHT TO MORE STORIESContact mayankaustensoofi@gmail.com for ad enquiries.Food lovers’ guide to Delhi.[Text and pictures by Mayank Austen Soofi]This restaurant profile is a part of the Table for One series.Sunny and sexy, this is a casual eating joint in the middle of Paharganj's Main Bazaar. Many dishes are misspelled in the menu (curd is card, dessert is desert) and the Today's Special, hand-written on a white board, hasn't changed in months. The Assamese steward has no regular uniform and the diners, mostly western backpackers, are half-naked. As Bob Marley or Tibetan chants play in the background, women with deep cleavages schmooze freely with hairy-chested men. Sunlight, sneaking in from the glass-wall, sews up

GO STRAIGHT TO CITY CLASSIFIEDS & CITY EVENTSGO STRAIGHT TO MORE STORIESContact mayankaustensoofi@gmail.com for ad enquiries.A German student discovers a Tibetan Buddhist Center in the city.[Text and pictures by Thomas Kappler; he runs a blogsite and a photo album. This article was written exclusive for The Delhi Walla]From February to July this year I studied at IIT Delhi as an exchange student. Being interested in Indian spirituality and especially in Buddhism, like many others in the West, I soon found a peaceful refuge from the hustle-and-bustle of Delhi. The Tushita Meditation Center is in the exclusive Padmini Enclave at Hauz Khas. Making my way through a leafy garden I descend into a basement along a row of most beautiful