City Landmark – Mullaji Ice Merchant, Mohalla Qabristan Chowk Landmarks by The Delhi Walla - July 10, 2023July 10, 20231 Of the ice age. [Text and photo by Mayank Austen Soofi] It never snows in Delhi. But our eyes can always see the ice at Mullaji Baraf Wale. This tiny establishment in Mohalla Qabristan Chowk sells baraf all through the year. It has to be one of the very few shops where you may buy baraf as causally as buying dal-cheeni-salt. But much has changed. Once upon a time, the shop would source its ice from the long-closed Baraf Khana in the nearby Subzi Mandi. Now, the baraf comes from the “ice factories” of distant Loni. Once, the baraf would be dispatched in a horse-drawn tonga, or in a bullock cart. Now, it arrives in a mini truck (late at night when the
City Faith – Shiv Temple, Jor Bagh Faith by The Delhi Walla - July 10, 20230 An oasis. [Text and photos by Mayank Austen Soofi] Hill, trees, bushes, grass. And to top it all—a temple at the top. Being here is like a get together with solitude and peace. People travel to sacred seclusions in the Himalayas, such as Amarnath and Kedarnath, to pray,, to rejuvenate. That same quest must also take them to this place, in Delhi’s heart. Perched on the flattened heights of a low hill, the little-known Shiv Mandir in Jor Bagh is that rare spot in the capital region where you escape from the gravitational pulls of daily anxieties. All you have to do is to mount a simple flight of stairs. It takes a minute to climb, after which you step into a tension-free