City Monument – The Church(es) of The Epiphany, Civil Lines, Gurgaon
A tale of two times. [Text and photos by Mayank Austen Soofi] Old Delhi and New Delhi. Old Gurgaon and New Gurgaon. In both cases the ‘old’ and ‘new’ parts stand very close to each other, and yet they are…
City Monument – Dadi-Poti’s Tombs, Green Park
Ode to unknowns. [Text and photos by Mayank Austen Soofi] Every granny needs a monument. And every granddaughter, another one close by. This double requirement is perfectly fulfilled in south Delhi’s breezy Green Park locality, which is home to two…
City Monument – Beyond Humayun’s Tomb, Humayun’s Tomb
The world around the icon. [Text and photos by Mayank Austen Soofi] The big one, Pilkhan, is 104 years old, and the small one, frangipani, is just 15. You too might have noticed the juxtaposed beauty of these two trees—…
City Monument – Old Beautiful Doorways, Galli Chooriwallan Street
Celebrating a souvenir. [Text and photos by Mayank Austen Soofi] It is arrayed out in six panels. The planks that link them are studded with cap-like decorations, like little black nails. Four gigantic latches are fitted at different corners, their…
City Monument – Green Door, Galli Chooriwallan Street
On the death of a door. [Text and photos by Mayank Austen Soofi] It’s gone. Until last week, the beautiful door was there. But not anymore. Nor the old house behind it. A black plastic sheet stands in place of…
City Monument – Ruined Graveyard, Deer Park
Here lie the unknown. [Text and photos by Mayank Austen Soofi] It has been raining on and off for the past few days, and the graves have gone mossy. The stoney ground is green and slippery too. But this evening,…
City Monument – Corona-Era Jama Masjid, Old Delhi
The edifice these days. [Text and photos by Mayank Austen Soofi] The gigantic courtyard is empty. So empty that even the customary pigeons are not there — remember how they would always be seen flying from the courtyard to the…
City Monument – The Mosque’s Minar, Jama Masjid
Top of the world. [Text and photos by Mayank Austen Soofi] Pigeons have it lucky. They can simply soar upwards to easily mount the imposing dome of Jama Masjid—to take in a panoramic view of not only the Walled City…
City Monument – Mirza Ghalib’s Statue, Jamia Millia Islamia University
Poet’s spot. [Text and photos by Mayank Austen Soofi] Consider this. Although he’s one of the world’s great poets, spending most of his life in Delhi, there’s nary a statue of him in the Capital. How is it that Mirza…
City Monument – Muhammad Shah Rangila’s Tomb, Hazrat Nizamuddin’s Dargah
King’s grave. [Text and photos by Mayank Austen Soofi] He was known as ‘Rangila’, the colourful, but his grave is white. Mughal emperor Muhammad Shah Rangila‘s marble tomb lies in the central Delhi sufi shrine of Hazrat Nizamuddin Auliya. The…
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