Dining chez Humayun’s.

[Text and photo by Mayank Austen Soofi]

They say that years ago a canteen existed inside the Humayun Tomb monument complex, under a semal tree. It is now a part of our city’s barely remembered past. On the other hand, it is always like a bustling food court outside the monument’s ticket counter space, on the wide pave that overlooks the Subz Burj traffic circle. The place teems with snack stalls. Each stall is a modest enterprise, each doles out tasty snack.

As seen on Monday evening, there is malai kulfi stall by Sunil, jaljeera stall by Neeraj, biscuit-and-chips stall by Shahana, golgappa stall by Sachin, ice-cream carts by Owais and Imran respectively, samosa and heeng-wale-khasta-kachori stall by Manoj (see photo), jhalmuri stall by Rakesh, aloo patties stall by Yaseen Ahmad, bucket channa stall by Satbeer… and the venerable Amar Singh has been administering his ram laddu stall (the green chutney is super-yummy) outside the tomb for a record 30 years.

And there is also one of Delhi’s best chhole kulcha stalls. This year it is quietly observing its 10th anniversary.

Jasbeer’s original spot was the parking area outside the monument’s former entrance, across the narrow road from Sunder Nursery’s entrance. He still parks his cart in that same area, a two-minute walk away from the aforementioned stalls. Jasbeer’s cart is actually a bicycle. The stove (to heat the kulchas), as well as the giant brass cauldron (filled with the pre-cooked chhole), lie perched atop a wooden case, which lies upon the cycle’s back-carrier.

Moments before he hands over the chhole bowl to the diner, Jasbeer squeezes a half-slice of lemon onto the dish, throws in some chopped onions and tomatoes, plus a whole green chilli achar. He makes the achar at his home in Sarai Kale Khan, which is behind Humayun’s Tomb, on the other side of the railway tracks. A former labourer, Jasbeer starts his day by waking up long before the sunrise. While the monument is still to open, he and wife Sushma gets busy with the preliminary cooking for the day ahead.

Barring exceptions, all these snack vendors remain in the area during the monument’s viewing hours from sunrise to sunset (these days the tomb is open till 9pm). Late in the night, the broad pave overlooking the traffic circle becomes deserted, except for an ice-cream cart or two.