market in the pandemic. [Text and photos by Mayank Austen Soofi] Ramzan is gone, not its raunaq. The peppy bunting is hanging upon the street like an expired blessing (see photo). This weekday afternoon Old Delhi’s Matia Mahal Bazar is as packed as Nauchandi Mela. Even in the worst days of the pandemic, Matia Mahal bustled with masses, but the fear of yet another lockdown or covid wave would hang upon the bazar like an ominous dark cloud. That’s gone with the masks. It’s now like the carefree pre-2020 times. For 30 years, the one-armed Salim Bhai has been begging at the head of the bazar, beside the Kallan Sweets, across the road from Jama Masjid. He is back after spending lockdowns in