Letter from England – Kaloo, Part II
Life in a new land. [Text by Mayank Austen Soofi; photos from Marina Bang] Can a Delhi dog feel at home in the smog-free English countryside? In October 2013, The Delhi Walla described his farewell meeting with Kaloo, a former…
City Life – Gay Delhi, Jantar Mantar
The long walk to freedom. [Text and photos by Mayank Austen Soofi] In July 2009, the Delhi High Court legalized gay sex among consenting adults. In December 2013, India’s Supreme Court turned down that progressive and just verdict, reinstating a…
City Life – Gay Delhi, Around Town
Homosexuality in the capital. [Text and photos by Mayank Austen Soofi] In December 2013, India’s Supreme Court pronounced that gay sex is illegal. It has been a long journey for gay people in Delhi and across the country. “Looking for…
City Sighting – Arundhati Roy, Somewhere in Delhi
The dog of small things. [Text and photos by Mayank Austen Soofi] One winter morning The Delhi Walla sighted Arundhati Roy in a central Delhi apartment. According to reports in newspapers, the author of The God of Small Things is…
Hauz Khas Series – A House in the Village, Chapter 6
Life in Delhi’s prettiest neighborhood. [Text and photos by Mayank Austen Soofi] The Delhi Walla has been asked to move out of his rented room in Hauz Khas Village. Ah, these greedy landlords! The rant of every artist/designer/hipster of Hauz…
City Life – Street Vendors, Around Town
The god of small sellers. [Text and photos by Mayank Austen Soofi] For this hawker of mouth fresheners, her world is a tiny portion of the pavement in the capital’s Prabhu Market near central Delhi’s Sewa Nagar railway crossing. The…
City Life – The Wedding Reception, Daryaganj
The Old Delhi society. [Text and photos by Mayank Austen Soofi] The guests arrived at the Mahavir Vatika ground in Old Delhi’s Daryaganj in cabs, in auto-rickshaws, and in buses. Some came from a distance of ten miles, from Gaffar…
City Life – Last Surviving Homes, Khan Market
Home is where the mart is. [Text and photos by Mayank Austen Soofi] For some affluent Delhiites, posh Khan Market is like a second home. For a very, very few, Khan Market is home. But this will soon end. Consider…
City Life – Dangerous Bedroom, School Lane Flyover
Sleeping with the traffic. [Text and photos by Mayank Austen Soofi] About midnight. A few men and a few dogs are sleeping on the concrete divider. “The (traffic) fumes prevent the insects from coming on to the middle of the…
City Living – Stray Dogs Feeding Sites, Around Town
Feeding the soul. [Text and photos by Mayank Austen Soofi] Nosering, Sweety, Kaajal and Sudama are sitting close to a Mother Dairy booth in Vasant Kunj, New Delhi. It’s 3pm, and Sonya Ghosh is expected. An associate professor of English…
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