Mission Delhi – Manzoor, Abul Khair Street
One of the one percent in 13 million. [Text and photo by Mayank Austen Soofi] There’s baingan, lauki, aloo, bhindi, turai, tamatar, patta gobhi, neembu, hari mirchi, adrak, kaddu, palak and there is also Manzoor, who is the seller of…
City Life – Faces of a Far-Off War, Paharganj
On Israel and Palestine. [Text and photo by Mayank Austen Soofi] Everyone is smiling in these photos. A few are even grinning. All seem to be young. All are Israelis. The same carefree expressions are to be found on their…
City Landmark – Bahrisons Booksellers, Khan Market
Icon at 70. [Text and photo by Mayank Austen Soofi] He is 48. He joined the bookshop when he was 21. Today, Bahrisons Booksellers turns 70. And Mithilesh Singh (see photo) is its longest serving and most senior staffer. Founded…
City Landmark – Maktaba Jamia Limited, Urdu Bazar
The book house. [Text and photo by Mayank Austen Soofi] Amid shelves packed tight with books, two men in white kurta-pajama are browsing intently, their bodies barely moving. In a darkened book-lined chamber within, a ladder is going up to…
City Food – Cotton Candy Men, Around Town
Mama-bhanja chronicles. [Text and photo by Mayank Austen Soofi] Quietly they are walking along the pave. A huge tokri, basket, is clamped on the back of each man. The baskets are filled with rolls of blue and pink wool, heralding…
City Hangout – Tracking the Pigeons, Chitli Qabar Chowk
Bird’s-eye view. [Text and photo by Mayank Austen Soofi] Suddenly, the house of lawyer Nilofar “advocate” starts moving. Nahi nahi, these are actually the dark ripples moving along the building’s walls that give that impression. The restless pigeons are flying…
City Landmark – Lodhi Colony Railway Station, Central Delhi
Where time stops. [Text and photos by Mayank Austen Soofi] The railway station’s façade is tiny, cute, toy-like, comprising of two windows and a short flight of staircase. The foyer inside is dusty, littered with heaps of dry leaves. A…
Mission Delhi – Shyamdev, Daryaganj
One of the one percent in 13 million. [Text and photos by Mayank Austen Soofi] For 40 years, he had been a rickshaw puller. Then at 65, as he was finding it increasingly difficult to bear the strains of the…
City Landmark – Mobile Phone Statues, South Extension
Installations in a changing world. [Text and photos by Mayank Austen Soofi] See the smiling woman on the bench staring at her mobile. Maybe she’s reading a WhatsApp joke, or binge-watching those funny Instagram reels with high-pitched laughing sound effects….
Delhi’s Bandaged Heart – Esha Rajan, Najafgarh
Poet in the city. [Text and photos by Mayank Austen Soofi] She is a poet and she lives in Najafgarh, so it is logical to call her a poet of Najafgarh. But the assertion holds true only up to a…
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