City Walk – Prithviraj Road, Central Delhi
A stroll through exclusivity. [Text and photo by Mayank Austen Soofi] The road is wide. The pavement is also wide, so wide that three or four of us can easily walk together side by side. Meanwhile, the night air is…
City Neighbourhood – Gali Ghisi Int, Old Delhi
A street with an unusual name. [Text and photo by Mayank Austen Soofi] It feels like Vladivostok. Just as remote, as isolated from the crowded and familiar world. This silent Old Delhi street, on the slope of Pahari Bhojla, is…
City Neighbourhood – Gali Ghantewali, Old Delhi
A street of the bell. [Text and photo by Mayank Austen Soofi] Lazy but punctual, it comes back every hour to mark the passing of time. Sometimes its sound is so muted by the daytime blabber of the streets, and…
City Neighbourhood – Gali Gondni Wali, Old Delhi
A street of the interiors. [Text and photo by Mayank Austen Soofi] Walking down the Walled City galis is comparable to chase scenes in James Bond thrillers in which the hero is running after the anti-hero through a variety of…
City Neighbourhood – Gali Dakotan, Old Delhi
Lane of Saturday people. [Text and photo by Mayank Austen Soofi] Place-names in Old Delhi make sense. Gosht Wali Pahari is nestled along a pahari and has shops selling gosht. Pahari Imli had an imli tree. Gali Akhare Wali had…
City Neighbourhood – Gali Bhootni Wali, Old Delhi
Lane of ghosts. [Text and photo by Mayank Austen Soofi] Bitter cold. Not a mouse stirring. All is silent and dark. Gali Bhootni Wali in Old Delhi gets its name from ghosts, but no such bhoot is to be seen…
City Neighbourhood – Ganj Meer Khan, Old Delhi
A place-name in the Walled City. [Text and photo by Mayank Austen Soofi] The suburbs are wild with five-storied housings, dwarfed by even taller multistories. But this five-storey is looming Everest-like in Old Delhi’s cramped, narrow Ganj Meer Khan, where…
City Neighbourhood – Katra Baan Wale, Old Delhi
A place-name in the Walled City. [Text and photo by Mayank Austen Soofi] In the old days in Old Delhi, Purani Dilli wale would have beds of baan, strings made of “munj” or “kans” plants. These beds were called charpai,…
City Walk – Gali Hanuman Mandir Wali, Old Delhi
Hidden beauty. [Text and photo by Mayank Austen Soofi] The arched entrance is made of marble, but at this afternoon hour, the entry is shut closed with a metal shutter. The contrast between the smooth white stone and the choppy…
City Walk – Civil Lines, North Delhi & Gurugram
Double Lines. [Text and photo by Mayank Austen Soofi] It is the balmiest of places. It is the balmiest of places. It is called Civil Lines. It is called Civil Lines. It is in north Delhi. It is further south,…
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