City Landmark - Chabad House, Paharganj

City Landmark – Chabad House, Paharganj

The Jewish dharamshala. [Text and photos by Mayank Austen Soofi] Found! The place where you will get the best pita bread in the whole Delhi region. It is thick with a proper, sturdy pocket to hold the fillings. Hummus and…

City Landmark - Ukrainian Embassy, Vasant Vihar

City Landmark – Ukrainian Embassy, Vasant Vihar

The other diplomatic enclave. [Text and photos by Mayank Austen Soofi] “September 23, 2022: 212nd day of full-scaled Russian aggression.” So says the flier pinned on the board. While the gate has a framed map of Ukraine. An adjacent poster…

City Landmark - People’s Publishing House, Connaught Place

City Landmark – People’s Publishing House, Connaught Place

Gorbachev’s tomb. [Text and photos by Mayank Austen Soofi] Russia is fighting with Ukraine. Kyrgyzstan is fighting with Tajikistan. Armenia and Azerbaijan too have clashed, yet again, with each other. It all is in this month’s news (September 2022). Mikhail…

City Landmark - India Gate, Redeveloped Central Vista

City Landmark – India Gate, Redeveloped Central Vista

First day in the new Central Vista. [Text and photo by Mayank Austen Soofi] People in funny hats. Selfie snappers. Photographs pestering visitors to get souvenir photos clicked, their prints guaranteed in ten minutes flat. Everything around India Gate feels…

City Landmark - Christian Cemetery, Civil Lines, Gurgaon

City Landmark – Christian Cemetery, Civil Lines, Gurgaon

Graveyard’s lives. [Text and photo by Mayank Austen Soofi] A graveyard is like a poetry collection. Each grave is a poem, full of sweet and sad feelings, and each grave endures as the final souvenir of a concluded life. Delhi…

City Landmark - Red Arches, Ghaziabad Railway Junction

City Landmark – Red Arches, Ghaziabad Railway Junction

Station no. 1. [Text and photos by Mayank Austen Soofi] Ooh La La! It is looking like some glass-domed international airport. Even so, the dream building shall still have daily departures not to Charles de Gaulle or John F. Kennedy,…

Gullak cart

City Landmark – Pappu’s Gullak Cart, Seelampur

Seller of a rare thing. [Text and photo by Mayank Austen Soofi] He has a big belly, makes lots of money and is very kanjoos, not prone to give away his riches. Who is he? Hint 1: he is not…

City Landmark - Muhammed Sabir's Dupatta Shop, Sir Syyed Ahmad Street

City Landmark – Muhammed Sabir’s Dupatta Shop, Sir Syyed Ahmad Street

A rare stall. [Text and photos by Mayank Austen Soofi] Purple, green, brown, blue, red, black, grey, mustard green, cream, white… the colours are lying in folded heaps. Some are hanging from hooks. These colours are accumulated here in multitudinous…

City Landmark - Lodhi Road Crematorium, Central Delhi

City Landmark – Lodhi Road Crematorium, Central Delhi

Where we go to. [Text and photos by Mayank Austen Soofi] Shareer (body) is a khet (farm field), atma (soul) is the kisan (farmer), and paap (sin) and poornya (merit) are two beej (seeds). The line is inscribed on the…

City Landmark - City End, Near Sector 55-56 Metro Station, Gurgaon

City Landmark – City End, Near Sector 55-56 Metro Station, Gurgaon

Last point. [Text and photos by Mayank Austen Soofi] Big cities are like a sentence with lots of commas but without a full stop. You just don’t know where they might end. Check that out by driving through Delhi. Like…