Mission Delhi - Rakesh, Matia Mahal Bazar

Mission Delhi – Rakesh, Matia Mahal Bazar

One of the one percent in 13 million. [Text and photo by Mayank Austen Soofi] Tomorrow is Dussehra. The day after he will leave our city, and will return a year later, for the next Dussehra. But this moment as…

City Monument - Dilli Gate, Najafgarh

City Monument – Dilli Gate, Najafgarh

A namesake. [Text and photo by Mayank Austen Soofi] The world has many Dilli Gates. There is a Dilli Gate in Lahore. There is a Dilli Gate in Ajmer. In Bharatpur. In Aligarh. In our very own Ghaziabad. All these…

City Life - Ramlila Actors, Ramlila Ground

City Life – Ramlila Actors, Ramlila Ground

Once in a year. [Text and photos by Mayank Austen Soofi] The crown gracing his head, the smooth folds of his dress–every inch the King Dashrath. But the Raja Dashrath sitting on this plain Jane plastic chair is also a…

City Season - Saptaparni Blossoms, Around Town

City Season – Saptaparni Blossoms, Around Town

In search of flowers. [Text and photo by Mayank Austen Soofi] Last night was a violent night, à la Wuthering Heights. There was thunder, lightning, and for a few minutes the hissing wind raged like a storm. This overcast morning,…

City Landmark - Ramlila Maidan, Central Delhi

City Landmark – Ramlila Maidan, Central Delhi

Living to its name. [Text and photo by Mayank Austen Soofi] Break Dance, Joy Wheel, Columbus, Cross, Tora Tara… such are the names of the joy rides that have sprung up here. There’s a toy train too. Sandwiched like a…

Mission Delhi - Bhai Wali, Mohalla Qabristan Chowk

Mission Delhi – Bhai Wali, Mohalla Qabristan Chowk

One of the one percent in 13 million. [Text and photo by Mayank Austen Soofi] When does Bhai Wali sleep? The tall, slim, elderly insomniac is always seen sitting fully alert on a battered chair, at all times of the…

City Landmark - Muhammed Rafi's Shaving Stall, Ajmeri Gate

City Landmark – Muhammed Rafi’s Shaving Stall, Ajmeri Gate

Time’s veteran. [Text and photos by Mayank Austen Soofi] Look at this monument. It has been standing on this spot for years and years. An unsuspecting person will naturally mistake the monument in question for Ajmeri Gate, one of the…

City Season - October Light, Around Town

City Season – October Light, Around Town

Tracking the season’s subtle glow [Text and photo by Mayank Austen Soofi] The shadows the tree leaves are making on the wall are continually trembling (because a slow breeze is blowing the adjoining trees). On the same wall, a spherical…

Delhi's Proust Questionnaire - Zahid Ali Khan, Somewhere in Delhi

Delhi’s Proust Questionnaire – Zahid Ali Khan, Somewhere in Delhi

The parlour confession. [By Mayank Austen Soofi] He joined the All India Radio as an Urdu news reader in March, 1965. He retired in April, 1999. He hasn’t retired from hyperactive life. At 86, he flits around the city everyday…

City Food - Kamlesh Kumar Saini's Lunch Kiosk, Ajmeri Gate

City Food – Kamlesh Kumar Saini’s Lunch Kiosk, Ajmeri Gate

A moveable feast [Text and photo by Mayank Austen Soofi] What to do when one’s village is midway between the bustling urban centers of Motihari and Muzaffarpur? You accept them both as your homelands. That’s why Kamlesh Kumar Saini named…