Mission Delhi – Kaloo, Jor Bagh Mission Delhi by The Delhi Walla - October 28, 2013October 30, 20135 One of the one percent in 13 million. [Text and photos by Mayank Austen Soofi] His life is about to change for ever. The Delhi Walla meets Kaloo one early autumn evening at his bungalow in central Delhi’s Jor Bagh. He is sitting beside pink bougainvilleas. A black mongrel, Kaloo was living on the streets before he was adopted by Marina and her husband Mark, the new arrivals in the neighbourhood. Now, years later Kaloo’s parents are moving to England and he is going with them, along with his brother Brownie. Kaloo used to be a biter, a habit, his mother Marina says, that was borne of having to defend himself from the maltreatment he received on the street. But his new parents gave
City Monument – Sacred Heart Cathedral, Central Delhi Monuments by The Delhi Walla - October 25, 2013November 1, 20131 Hall of grace. [Text and photos by Mayank Austen Soofi] Delhi's largest Catholic church has twice been graced by the presence of Pope John Paul II. Spread over 14 acres, which includes two schools, the cathedral is the headquarters of the Delhi Archdiocese. Completed in 1934, it was built 70 years after the city’s first catholic church, St Mary’s, near Delhi railway station. Henry Medd, who later became the chief architect to the government of British India, designed it. The red brick structure was selected from eight entries that were judged by a panel which included Edwin Lutyens, the architect behind New Delhi. The church has a massive vaulted ceiling under a towering curved roof, polished stone floors and broad arches. The façade has
Photo Essay – Alice Munro, Around Town Photo Essays by The Delhi Walla - October 24, 2013December 24, 20131 A few short stories. [Text and photos by Mayank Austen Soofi] Little happens in the short stories of Alice Munro. Her people consists of good women trying to make sense of hateship, frienship, courtship, loveship and marriage. Delhi is not Ms Munro's Canada but The Delhi Walla often sees her women in the city. 1y. 1d. 1. 2. 2a. 3. 5. 6. 8. 9. 10. 10a. 10b. 11. 12.
City Life – Home Sweet Home, Roop Nagar Delhi Homes by The Delhi Walla - October 22, 2013September 29, 20151 Inside the walls. [Text and photos by Mayank Austen Soofi] One afternoon The Delhi Walla knocked at the door of Vij Bhawan in Roop Nagar, a neighborhood in north Delhi. The bungalow is home to the extended families of four brothers: Yashpal, Vishwanath, Ram Prakash and the late Lali. The two-storied house consists of 17 rooms and 5 kitchens. It is home to three generations of 16 family members. In their book Social Aging in a Delhi Neighborhood, authors John Van Willigen and N. K. Chadha says that Roop Nagar and its nearby ‘colonies’ such as Shakti Nagar, Kamla Nagar, and Vijay Nagar ‘provided housing to the people who were part of a dramatic increase in the population of Delhi following
Delhi’s Proust Questionnaire – Govind Singh, Gurgaon-Faridabad Road Delhi Proustians by The Delhi Walla - October 20, 2013October 24, 20131 The Proustian self-introspection. [By The Delhi Proustians] The Proust Questionnaire represents a form of interview that owes its structure to answers given by French novelist Marcel Proust, the author of In Search of Lost Time, at two birthday parties that he attended at ages 13 and 20 in the late 19th century. In 2013, The Delhi Proustians takes Les confidences de salon (Drawing room confessions) around the city to explore people’s lives, thoughts, values and experiences. This series involves interviews across Delhi and is conducted by writers Manika Dhama and Mayank Austen Soofi. For the eleventh installment in the series Delhi’s Proust Questionnaire, Govind Singh made confessions to Manika on the Gurgaon-Faridabad road. Mr Singh works as a driver and stays in Gijhor village
Delhi’s Bandaged Heart – John Keats, Nehru Park City Poetry General Hangouts by The Delhi Walla - October 18, 2013June 3, 20151 Poetry in the city. [Text and photos by Mayank Austen Soofi] The Delhi Walla arranged to meet English poet John Keats in Nehru Park, a garden in the city's diplomatic enclave. It was an almost imperceptible autumn morning. The sunshine was soft. The air was faintly misty. The sky was painted a friendly shade of blue. There were pink flowers in some of the trees. The wild grass was wet. Squirrels were rushing down the gentle slopes, and parrots were hanging out with pigeons. Two morning walkers were noisily discussing an unfolding situation in Pakistan. A middle-aged man was lying sprawled on a green bench; he was reading Punjab Kesari. The overhanging wooden bridge made a creaking sound as John Keats walked across it.
Hauz Khas Series – A House in the Village, Chapter 6 Life Regions by The Delhi Walla - October 16, 2013December 2, 20133 Life in Delhi’s prettiest neighborhood. [Text and photos by Mayank Austen Soofi] The Delhi Walla has been asked to move out of his rented room in Hauz Khas Village. Ah, these greedy landlords! The rant of every artist/designer/hipster of Hauz Khas Village. Wasn’t it once just another ugly village in south Delhi, notwithstanding its picturesque ruins? Wasn’t it us the long-haired bohemians who made it oh-so-cool? So cool that rents skyrocketed and landlords kicked us out for those willing to pay more (the prime location on the main street could command Rs.1.5 lakh a month). In June 2013, Outlook magazine ran a story, saying: “Greedy owners, big brands and rude money cramp the folksy chic of Hauz Khas Village”. Mange Ram Gochhwal, 55, looks puzzled
Photo Essay – Epitaph on Chandni Chowk, Mughal Delhi Photo Essays by The Delhi Walla - October 11, 2013October 14, 20135 The ruins-of-an-empire mindset. [Text by Mayank Austen Soofi] This is not our Chandni Chowk. The Delhi Walla is in possession of some old photos of the city, which were taken after the downfall of Mughals in 1857. One of them is of the fabled promenade. It looks like a place of cold beauty. There is no crowd. Life lies still. The avenue is divided along its entire length by a row of trees. A few huts are clustered at the forefront. One side of the bazaar is taken over by a dense congregation of havelis, the residences of the nobility. The Red Fort ramparts stand forlorn like the boundary of an entombed paradise. This quiet world before us seems to have been woven out
City Sighting – Morris Minor, Jor Bagh General by The Delhi Walla - October 7, 2013October 8, 20135 A ‘purple vomit’. [Text and photos by Mayank Austen Soofi] One evening The Delhi Walla came face-to-face with a Morris Minor. It stood on a quiet lane in central Delhi’s tree-lined Jor Bagh. The Wikipedia describes the aforementioned vehicle as a “British economy car that debuted at the Earls Court Motor Show, London, on 20 September 1948.” The poor dear must have made a long journey to the Indian capital. It was parked in front of a 'No Parking' sign and looked wealthy and well-groomed. The rear windscreen carried the sticker of Coorg Wildlife Society. The license plate WBD suggested that the car's original owner might have been a resident of Calcutta (WBD was used for West Bengal until 1973). Morris Minor was
City Food – The Lunchbox, Around Town Food by The Delhi Walla - October 5, 2013May 5, 20146 The love of the packed meal. [Text and photos by Mayank Austen Soofi] Your lunchbox is a guide to the geography of your soul. Take Delhi-based Babita, who goes by one name. The 23-year-old vivacious girl is a cashier at the landmark BahriSons Booksellers in Khan Market. Babita loves cooking. Every day she carries to work a lunchbox as do her colleagues. They are blessed to be with BahriSons, for it is the only shop in Khan Market, apart from the KK Lee shoe and bag makers, that closes for a short while every afternoon so that the staffers can have their lunch at peace. At 2 pm sharp, the doorman Reet Bahadur draws the store’s blue curtain. One of the shop assistants spreads