A bookish excursion.

[Text and photos by Mayank Austen Soofi]

She was in a white top and she looked very happy.

One evening The Delhi Walla saw a beautiful curly-haired woman entering Faqir Chand & Sons bookstore on Khan Market’s Front Lane. She wandered around briefly around the stacks of new and old books. She also flashed a series of smiles all around her. She then exited and continued to walk on the market’s Front Lane.

The woman then entered Bahrisons Booksellers. She stood in front of a shelf and ran her fingers across the spines of a few paperbacks. She did not buy any book.

Next, the woman headed towards the market’s Middle Lane. She opened a glass door on the right side of the street, walked up the stairs and stepped into Full Circle Bookstore. There, she briefly interacted with the charming lady who mans the shop. She stayed not more than ten minutes.

The woman, however, failed to visit two other important bookstores of Khan Market—Tharia Ram & Sons and The Book Shop.

But that was no fault of hers. Those two beloved landmarks had shut down years ago.

Is she into fiction or non-fiction?

1. (Front Lane)

2. (Faqir Chand & Sons)

3. (Bahrisons Booksellers)

4.

5. (Middle Lane)

6.

7. (Full Circle Bookstore)

8.