Mission Delhi – Irene Banias, Humayun’s Tomb

One of the one per cent in 13 million. [Text and pictures by Mayank Austen Soofi] She clicks the camera button, looks at the image on the LCD screen and is disappointed. “I’m better at writing than photography,” she says….

City Life – Admission Season, Delhi University

The rite of passage. [Text and pictures by Mayank Austen Soofi] It is the last hurdle before you become an adult. The admission process in Delhi University (DU) has its own rituals. It comes in summer. It demands long queues….

City Culture – How I Got Drunk and Lost My Virginity in Nizamuddin Dargah

Trance music in Delhi’s most famous sufi shrine. [Text and pictures by Mayank Austen Soofi] Every Thursday evening music lovers gather at Nizamuddin dargah, the shrine of Delhi’s 14th century sufi saint Hazrat Nizamuddin Auliya. They wait for the Nizami…

City Life – Unique Gym, Kucha Tarachand

Sweating for the body. [Text and pictures by Mayank Austen Soofi] This is a large room with no window. The air smells of salty sweat. The walls are painted orange and purple. Stairs go up to a smaller floor area…

City Notice – The Delhi Walla is Now a Website

It’s no longer a blog. [Text and picture by Mayank Austen Soofi] The Delhi Walla is no longer a blog but a website with its own domain, thedelhiwalla.com. Please congratulate… Thank you.   You don’t like the new look? Blame my…

Campus Notepad – Reading Chomsky in Gulistan-e-Gandhi

Jamia Millia University is home to eclectic figures. [Text and picture by Mayank Austen Soofi] What has American leftist Noam Chomsky to do with the burger eating, Levi-wearing, Gucci-buying, mall going, America-dreaming generation? Can the Palestinain icon Yasser Arafat be…

City Monument – Gurudwara Seesganj, Chandni Chowk

Holy and serene. [Text and pictures by Mayank Austen Soofi] Not as open and airy as Bangla Sahib gurudwara in Connaught Place, Seesganj Sahib is as serene as any spiritual destination should be. It was built in memory of Guru…

Mission Delhi – Salim Javeri, Nizamuddin Basti

  One of the one per cent in 13 million. [Text and pictures by Mayank Austen Soofi] He walks to the young man and whisper in English, “Sir, I see you are lucky. ” The man stares at him for…

City Food – Ram Laddoo, Around Town

Simple and honest. [Text and pictures by Mayank Austen Soofi] Nobody knows how the deep fried balls of moong dal came to be known as Ram laddoo. It might have followed the Hindu belief that something with no name can…

City Season – Amaltas Tree, Hauz Khas Village

The summer’s gift. [Text and pictures by Mayank Austen Soofi] On April 12th, 2010, the tree was bare except for four dry leaves. When an eagle flew past the branches, they looked bleak. The Delhi Walla was in Hauz Khas…