Mission Delhi – Munazir, Central Delhi
One of the one percent in 13 million. [Text and photos by Mayank Austen Soofi] Most Delhiites are familiar with the deep-throated cry of “kabadi walla kabadi walla!” (scrap collector, scrap collector!) as he walks along residential lanes. His cry…
City Food – Mahadev-Parvati Chai Stall, Civil Lines, Gurgaon
Portrait of a partnership. [Text and photos by Mayank Austen Soofi] Just another roadside tea stall, you might say. But it has a picturesque setting. Under a leafy khirni tree. Outside a deliciously decrepit bungalow. Across the road from a…
Mission Delhi – Sush Pal, Vaishali
One of the one percent in 13 million. [Text and photos by Mayank Austen Soofi] At first glance, this auto-rickshaw driver in Vaishali in the Greater Delhi Region looks like somebody out of the post-gender age—where it’s politically incorrect to…
City Landmark – Venus Digital Colour Lab & Studio, Jacobpura, Gurgaon
The museum of visuals. [Text and photos by Mayank Austen Soofi] This is a treasure house and nobody realises it. Perhaps not even the good owner himself. “There was a time when we would daily sell 20 cameras, 100 film…
City Faith – Hazrat Nizamuddin’s Chilla, Central Delhi
A Sufi shelter. [Text and photos by Mayank Austen Soofi] It’s an escapist’s paradise. The chillah, or retreat, of Hazrat Nizamuddin Auliya is one of Delhi’s most serene monuments. Here, the city’s iconic 14th century sufi saint lived, meditated, and…
Mission Delhi – Raju, Bapu Niwas
One of the one percent in 13 million. [Text and photos by Mayank Austen Soofi] This small house is all he knows of MK Gandhi. “That takhat,” says Raju, pointing to a wooden bed, “is Gandhiji’s vishram-asan on which he…
City Landmark – Stein’s Architecture, India Habitat Centre
A work of art. [Text and photos by Mayank Austen Soofi] It’s like a beautiful art mural shattered into pieces. This is actually the building’s multitudinous ceiling panels reflecting off the water puddles. It just stopped raining here at the…
City Moment – A Friendly Surprise, Gurgaon
The memorable instant. [Text and photos by Mayank Austen Soofi] Can you survive daily life without friendship? Not having even a single friend? Prakash Swami can. “I have no friend,” he says in a friendly tone. In his early 40s,…
City Food – Patate al Forno, Ajay Guest House, Paharganj
So not Delhi. [Text and photos by Mayank Austen Soofi] This is for aloo aficionados. This dish, for once, is not deep-fried in oil. The patate al forno (210 rupees)—Italian baked potato—at Ajay Guest House is a relief from Delhi’s…
Mission Delhi – Kishen Pal, Central Delhi
One of the one percent in 13 million. [Text and photos by Mayank Austen Soofi] Kishen Pal is a determined citizen. Losing his arm in a 1990 accident, he was no longer able to work as a truck driver. Instead…
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