The ends of the lines. [Text and photos by Mayank Austen Soofi] All good stories must come to an end. But not always. In the case of the Delhi Metro Rail Corporation, it’s not clear where it all culminates. You could argue that there is no end of the line, because it’s one of the fastest expanding Metro networks in the world, carrying 2.4 million commuters daily. Actually, there are terminal stations, but the tracks always extend further as a silent promise of things to come. The rapid transit system has taken the city beyond its borders, into the neighbouring states. Slices of these states, though part of the National Capital Region (NCR) map, appeared wearyingly distant in the days before the Delhi Metro. Since

Life in the Metro. [Text and photos by Mayank Austen Soofi] His eyes were closed. His right fist was wrapped in a yellow cloth. The cloth was printed all over with the names of Lord Ram and his wife Sita. The man seemed to be in a state of perfect mindfulness. He could have been standing atop a Himalayan peak. He was actually in a Blue Line coach of the Delhi Metro (see the top photograph). This man was just one of the 2.4 million commuters who daily use the city's 12-year-old subway system. As the network spreads deeper into the capital, travelling in the Metro has become a rewarding experience. A brief commute becomes a colourful mosaic of various textures. And

Poems on the Metro. [Text and photos by Mayank Austen Soofi] We know that the Delhi Metro has become a part of our lives. The undocumented development, however, is the Metro’s deep tunnelling into the Capital’s literary bedrock. “Meanwhile, as the last train from Rajiv Chowk station pulls away, a young man rides the Metro and dreams of murder” — says the blurb of Raj Kamal Jha’s forthcoming novel, She Will Build Him A City. The well-known author has company. The Delhi Metro has been a muse to writers and poets before him. Jasbir Chatterjee, 48, is a customer relations manager at a car showroom. She wrote a poem on the Metro way back in 2006. That poem appeared in a UK textbook in 2012. Nishtha

The final frontier. [Text and photos by Mayank Austen Soofi] One cold morning The Delhi Walla travelled on the yellow line of the metro train and got off at Jahangir Puri, the route’s last destination in the north-west. At the exit gate, the overhead metro station took the form of a gigantic industrial complex, and the commuters who walked out of the escalators mutated into newly-constructed robots. A vegetable seller pushing his cart under the station’s pedestrian bridge provided the sole confirmation of humanity. By this hour, the GT-Karnal Road, teeming with Delhi Transport Corporation buses and auto-rickshaws, had expanded into a ribbon of dust. I parked myself on the adjacent street. It was bordered with factories; their tin sheds had rusted to shades

The scenic tracks. [Text and photos by Mayank Austen Soofi] The Delhi Walla has found the most picturesque spot from where to watch the majesty of the Delhi Metro. It lies in the little-known Aastha Kunj, in south Delhi. Visited by only a few solitude-seekers, the undulating Delhi Development Authority garden is landscaped near the Nehru Place business district. Every 2 minutes, one can see from here the silver-grey coaches of the Metro running past a backdrop of high-rises such as the International Trade Tower, InterContinental Eros hotel and Satyam Cineplex. The ground beneath the elevated tracks is a totally different world—carpeted with grass, dotted with trees and bushes. A magnificent sight. The Delhi Metro Rail Corp. began operations almost 11 years ago.

Ghost of the games. [Text and photos by Mayank Austen Soofi] It is 10 years since Delhi Metro Rail Corp. (DMRC) ran its first train. Most Delhiwallas have grown to think of Metro stations as places to push each other into rail coaches. The Jawaharlal Nehru (JLN) Stadium station in central Delhi is different. A cynic might mock it as a symbol of world-class Delhi. A diehard optimist might plug it as the perfect getaway from the pushy Delhiite. “Not many people come here,” says a guard. “It doesn’t see much crowd,” says the clerk at the token counter. But the station has been designed to handle great crowds. As seen on a display board: Extra-large staircases have been provided at all the five entry

Divided by the headgear. [Text and photos by Mayank Austen Soofi] The permanent and temporary employees in the construction sites of Delhi Metro are divided by the colors of their helmets. The white is for the officers of Delhi Metro Rail Corporation and guest visitors. The purple is for the supervisors and engineers. The grey is for the quality supervisors. The blue is for the sub-contractors. The yellow is for the daily wagers. The red is for the electricians. The orange is for the security guards. The green is for the security officers. The Delhi Walla spotted a few helmets in the Janpath construction site. Unite, mix the colors! 1. 2. 3. 4. 5. 6. 7. 8. 9. 10. 11. 12.

Romance in the subway. [Text and photos by Mayank Austen Soofi] This msg is for cutie pie who boarded Metro from Pitampura on 2 February around 8.30am & left at Sec 16 Noida station. She was wearing blu jeans & black levis tee. U were looking gorgeous. I am the guy standing near u. Is there any chance of new frnd. If you too liked me, reply me. — A message on “Dil Se”, a classified section in the HT City, Delhi, supplement of Hindustan Times. A train pulled into the yellow line underground Metro station at Rajiv Chowk, below the bustle of Connaught Place. The doors opened. They entered. The doors closed. The train moved. Leaning over her in the crowded compartment, his

Seen the famous in the metro? [Text and pictures by Mayank Austen Soofi] Have you spotted the capital's famous people in the Delhi Metro? The air-conditioned train service that started in 2002, connecting east Delhi’s Shahdara to north Delhi’s Tis Hazari, extended to south Delhi and Gurgaon in 2010. Till the metro's network was not extensive enough to reach every neighbourhood, these big-car people could always avoid rubbing shoulders with us 'ordinary' Delhiwallas by saying that they possibly could not travel in Blueline buses. But the Bluelines have gone and now the metro stops at Khan Market, Delhi's grandest steel bubble. The Delhi Walla finds out if the city's upper crust has finally condescended to use the city’s mass transport system.