Netherfield Ball – Barkha Dutt the Prime Time Killer & Siddhartha Mukherjee the Telugu Film Heartthrob, India Habitat Center

The party secrets. [Text and photos by Mayank Austen Soofi] News anchor Barkha Dutt looked like a Prime Time killer in her flowing silky-white pajamas. Publisher Meru Gokhale, wearing white from head to toe, seemed as fragile as late night…

City Moment - The Kitchen King's Evening Outing, Nehru Park

The memorable instant. [Text and photos by Mayank Austen Soofi] The sun has set but the sky isn’t dark yet. One evening The Delhi Walla is walking in Nehru Park. The city seems to be winding down for the night….

City Food – Khandani Pakodiwalla, Near Bhikaji Cama Flyover

Delhi’s best deep-fried vegetarian pakodas. [Text and pictures by Mayank Austen Soofi] Some dishes are unlucky to be ghettoized with a certain kind of weather. For some reason pakodas are romanticized with rain. As the sky darkens, cooks dutifully cut…

City Season - The First Monsoon Shower, Khan Market

The wet days. [Text and photos by Mayank Austen Soofi] First, lightning and thunder. That upset the birds. Then a strong wind started. Leaves blew everywhere. One evening The Delhi Walla was in Khan Market when the weather decided to…

City List - Foodies of the World, Hauz Khas Village

The hungry villagers. [Text and photos by Mayank Austen Soofi] If a First World foreigner is airlifted from her land straight into Hauz Khas Village, she will find it next to impossible to believe it is Delhi’s coolest hangout. The…

Mission Delhi - Muhammed Irfan Qureshi, Turkman Gate

One of the one percent in 13 million. [Text and photos by Mayank Austen Soofi] He sits in his blood-stained jeans, surrounded by chunks of meat hanging from hooks, and holds up his bloodied hands like a trophy. Next to…

Netherfield Ball – Power Couple Ananya Vajpeyi and Basharat Peer & Former Prime Minister Narasimha Rao, India International Center

The party secrets. [Text and photos by Mayank Austen Soofi] Most people looked grave enough to pass off as authors. The curly-haired Vinay Sitapati was not one of them (see photo 3 below). He looked like an author only on…

City Moment - Two Women Bikers in Late Night Delhi,  Bhishma Pitamah Marg

The memorable instant. [Text and photos by Mayank Austen Soofi] A most unexpected thing happened on Central Delhi’s Bhishma Pitamah Marg one late night. Two young women stopped their bike abruptly on spotting The Delhi Walla‘s camera and demanded to…

City List – The 20 Lovely Shop Assistants of The Book Shop in Jorbagh

You are remembered. [Text and photos by Mayank Austen Soofi] A nice bookstore is cherished not only for its collection of books and its charming owners, but also for its friendly shop assistants. Since the time it was founded by…

City Notice - Catherine Lama is Dead, Lodhi Road

The passing away of a beautiful woman. [Text and photos by Mayank Austen Soofi] Catherine Lama, who always wore a red rose in her hair and who lived on a Delhi pavement, died in June 2016. There was no certainty…