City List - New & Old Road Names, Around Town

City List – New & Old Road Names, Around Town

On the margs [Text and photos by Mayank Austen Soofi] Dalhousie Road and Aurangzeb Road, rest in peace. In February 2017, the New Delhi Municipal Council renamed Dalhousie Road as Dara Shikoh Road. Lord Dalhousie was a colonial-era administrator in…

City List - Best Selling Dishes, Latitude & Other Khan Market Eateries

City List – Best Selling Dishes, Latitude & Other Khan Market Eateries

Best loved dishes. [Text and photos by Mayank Austen Soofi] Yet another geriatric giant shut shop in the well-set Khan Market. The Chonas restaurant on the Front Lane closed early this year. It had begun as an ice-cream parlour when…

City List - 20 Living Urdu Writers, Dehli

City List – 20 Living Urdu Writers, Dehli

Beyond Ghalib. [Text and photos by Mayank Austen Soofi] An English newspaper reader is more likely to have heard of Upamanyu Chatterjee (who lives in Nizamuddin East) or Aatish Taseer (near Lodi Garden) than Khalid Jawed (Okhla) or Anjum Usmani…

City List - Surviving Landmarks, Red Fort

City List – Surviving Landmarks, Red Fort

Remains of the past. [Text and photos by Mayank Austen Soofi] Never judge a fort by its ramparts. The only grand part of the Mughal-era Red Fort palace complex is its outer wall. Inside, the old buildings look ruined. In…

City List – Delhi's Great Jews, Around Town

City List – Delhi’s Great Jews, Around Town

The Capital heritage. [Text and photos by Mayank Austen Soofi] The most beautiful and inspirational post-colonial architecture in New Delhi is the work of a Jew. In other words, Delhi’s Jewish legacy goes beyond its only Jewish graveyard near Khan…

City List – Queer Landmarks, Around Town

City List – Queer Landmarks, Around Town

The Delhi gaydar. [Text and photos by Mayank Austen Soofi; the above photo was sourced from Gaylaxy magazine] From the top to the bottom, this is a list of Delhi’s most well-known and lesser-known queer sites. Made with inputs from…

City List – Shahi Imams, Jama Masjid

City List – Shahi Imams, Jama Masjid

Migrants from Bukhara. [Text and photo by Mayank Austen Soofi] Old Delhi’s Jama Masjid formally received its future ‘royal’ imam, or chief cleric, in November 2014. The Mughal-era mosque and the immediate surroundings were lit up with electric bulbs at…

City List - Walla Blogs/Sites, Inspired from The Delhi Walla

City List – Walla Blogs/Sites, Inspired from The Delhi Walla

From Kashmir to Karachi. [Text and photo by Mayank Austen Soofi] The Delhi Walla started his blog/website in 2007. The aim was (and remains) to understand this city through its people, places, buildings, cuisines, seasons, and many other such aspects….

City List - Remarkable Modern Buildings, New Delhi

City List – Remarkable Modern Buildings, New Delhi

Architecture from 1928 to 2007. [Text and photos by Mayank Austen Soofi] In 2008, architecture scholar Rahul Khanna and photographer Manav Parhawk published The Modern Architecture of New Delhi. In the book’s introduction, Mr Khanna said, “We do not intend…

City List – Delhi Sultanate Rulers, First to Last

City List – Delhi Sultanate Rulers, First to Last

Delhi by list. [Text and photos by Mayank Austen Soofi] Delhi Sultanate spanned five dynasties, 32 rulers and 320 years. It laid the foundation of Islam in India and lasted from 1206 to 1526. Delhi is filled with its ruins….