From The Delhi Walla Archives – A Selection of Prints, “Somewhere in Delhi”, Fourth Batch Life Photo Essays by The Delhi Walla - December 12, 20240 Tangible souvenirs [By Mayank Austen Soofi] Hello friends! I’ve come out with a fourth batch of “Somewhere in Delhi” prints! The selection is curated and designed by Venetian designer Anna Gerotto, and professionally printed on high quality Hahnemühle Photo Rag 308 paper. Each print is signed and numbered by its writer-snapper--me! These tangible souvenirs are intended to carry a spirit of the work I have been doing non-stop day and night in the lanes of Delhi—since 2007! Three new options! Write to me for details at mayankaustensoofiarchive@gmail.com. Somewhere in Delhi 1. "Humayun's Tomb" a. b. 2. "Mango Cart" a. b. 3. "Nah Nah" a. b.
City Neighbourhood – Chatta Jaam Beg, Old Delhi Hangouts Life by The Delhi Walla - December 9, 20240 The Walled City encyclopaedia [Text and photo by Mayank Austen Soofi] No horses here any longer. Haven’t been seen for a long, long time. They aren’t even part of anybody’s lived memory. The horses have become a legend, and so have their “tabele,” the stables. But during the Badshah raaj, when the Mughals commanded the empire from the Red Fort, this Old Delhi street had tabele for horses. That must had also been a time when Jaam Beg hadn’t yet become a myth. Today, the man who gave his name to the street is remembered only as mister somebody who was VIP enough to have got the honorific title of ‘beg.’ Like any classical Purani Dilli street, Chatta Jaam beg in Tiraha
City Life – The Road Divider, Asaf Ali Road Life by The Delhi Walla - December 5, 20240 On lives of fellow citizens [Text and photo by Mayank Austen Soofi] The acclimated conditions for the area’s homeless citizens to spend nights on the long road divider have ended, here at Asaf Ali Road. For most of the year, this open air stretch in central Delhi serves as their preferred place for night rest. One reason being that the road’s late-hour vehicular traffic successfully wards off the mosquitoes, as attested by a few of the citizens who sleep on the divider. Plus, something must also be said about the divider’s many trees, which make the summertime heat somewhat less unbearable, according to the same citizens. But now the disruptive December cold is making the nights chilly. Most of the men who
City Nature – Amaltas Tree in Winter, Mathura Road Life Nature by The Delhi Walla - December 3, 20240 Ali's Amaltas [Text and photos by Mayank Austen Soofi] Winters have begun. The year’s summer has matured into a memory, along with all the aspects associated with it, including the city’s Amaltas trees that blossom in the time of extreme heat. One of the most picturesque Amaltas spectacles this year was witnessed on the smoggy Mathura Road. The tree stands beside a fruit juice-and-shake kiosk. This summer (and monsoon as well), it was packed with so many golden-yellow flowers that their combined weight made the showy branches droop. All day long, the flowers would keep falling on the pave, and yet the tree wouldn’t show even a hint of this continual loss. As if the falling flowers were being instantly replaced by
City Life – Carrom Club, Khwaja Mirdard Basti Life by The Delhi Walla - November 27, 20240 An escape from daily life. [Text and photo by Mayank Austen Soofi] The small room is just wide enough to fit in a small table and four chairs. The table is just wide enough to accommodate a carrom board. This entire setting in Khwaja Mirrdard Basti makes for a kind of cozy distraction from the daily life of Khwaja Mirdard Basti. The congested ‘hood near Barakhamba flyover in central Delhi has streets so narrow that many of them don’t get any daylight, forever doomed to cold damp darkness. The area has no playground, no park, no open space. This afternoon, in the tiny carrom board club, four Mirdard dwellers are absorbed into a round of game, hitting the black and white carrom
City Life – Rampal & Ramesh, Harsh Vihar Life by The Delhi Walla - October 30, 2024October 30, 20240 Two lives. [Text and photo by Mayank Austen Soofi] Dal, roti, mooli, hari mirchi. This is house painter Rampal’s meal this afternoon. While colleague Ramesh has got aloo-lobhiyan and roti. Rampal’s khana is prepared daily by wife Durgavati Devi. Ramesh’s wife Manju Devi lives in the village, so he cooks his own meals. Both men live in Harsh Vihar, but in separate addresses. They however always operate as a two-member team, and are working today in a housing society flat. For a change, the assignment hasn’t got anything to do with putai, or painting. They have been commissioned to clean the entire apartment in anticipation of the forthcoming Diwali festival. Sitting cross-legged on the drawing room floor, the men finish the lunch
City Walk – Gali Salim Mohd Shah, Old Delhi Life Walks by The Delhi Walla - October 14, 20240 The street of sparrows. [Text and photo by Mayank Austen Soofi] They are popping out of the green leaves like soap bubbles. Then they spread into the warm dusty air, quickly vanishing (like soap bubbles). Moments later, they are again sighted, as they return to the leaves. These are sparrows. The birds reside amid the cooling darkness of a gigantic hanging garden of malti vines. This must be among the very few places in Old Delhi where you may spot Delhi’s state bird, whose sightings have grown less common over the years. Indeed, the rare spectacle rescues Gali Salim Mohd Shah from ordinariness. Otherwise it has a severely minuscule scope. Some may simply dismiss the gali as a forgettable side-alley of Kucha
City Hangout – Monthly Literary Meet, Ghalib Academy Life by The Delhi Walla - September 25, 2024September 25, 20240 Poetry corner [Text and photo by Mayank Austen Soofi] Beware of poets. They are always on the hunt for an audience. If you like being their captive, then there’s a place in Delhi where many poets can recite their poems to you. Better still, you’ll get chai and samosas for free. Once a month (every second Saturday), Ghalib Academy in Hazrat Nizamuddin Basti hosts something called shairi nashasist—Urdu for ‘poetry-sitting.’ The session lasts from 4pm and goes on... til all the poets in the big hall finish reciting their compositions. The poems are rendered in spoken Hindi/Urdu of the Dilli lingo. But the banner on the stage is always headlined in English, with big red letters boldly proclaiming that the evening is the “Monthly
City Obituary – Reet Bahadur Simkhada, Bahrisons Booksellers, Khan Market Life by The Delhi Walla - September 20, 2024September 20, 20241 Passing of a familiar face [Text and photos by Mayank Austen Soofi] Reet Bahadur Simkhada, a long-time staffer in Khan Market’s Bahrisons Booksellers, died on Wednesday, following a brief illness. He was 66, and is survived by wife Jana Kumari and children Ranjana and Raju. A native of Nepal, Reet Bahadur had been a part of the shop since 2006. He would commute daily to work from his Zamrudpur home on a bicycle, lunchbox included. The tony Khan Market has a great number of loyalists. Many of them frequent the 70-year-old bookstore. Their first human encounter in the brick-and-mortar store would be with the friendly Reet Bahadur. He was always stationed by the door— but he was not a doorman. He was
City Life – Star Cricketers, Old Delhi Life by The Delhi Walla - September 14, 20240 Lest we forget. [Text and photos by Mayank Austen Soofi] During your next walking tour to Old Delhi, try catch glimpses of Nadeem, Kashif, Atif, Arib, Hayat and Kamran. These super six are being hailed by the historic quarter’s cricketing world as among the top players in the recently concluded BMMTA Cup (full form—Bazar Matia Mahal Traders Association). Matia Mahal with about 700 shops is among the Walled City’s most boisterous bazars. Last week the market’s association hosted a T10-style cricket tournament involving eight Old Delhi teams in seven matches held over four days in Chandni Chowk. The audience at the Shanti Desai Sports Club was made of Walled City’s cricket fans, along with students of a school close to the playground. The