City Life – The Black Mughal of Jorbagh in Rural England, Cholsey
The country living of a native migrant.
[Text and photos by Mayank Austen Soofi]
Meet the Black Mughal of Cholsey, a sleepy village in England.
The Delhi Walla is at Kaalu’s home. He lives with his three friends. One of them is a dog, and the other two are humans. They all urged me not to identify them by their name.
Kaalu was born many years ago and many thousands of miles away in Delhi. Though his biographers are silent on his parents, some facts of his life are out there in public (click here to read on Kaalu’s Indian life).
Kaalu was a stray dog in the affluent Central Delhi neighbourhood of Jorbagh. He had a violent temper and was considered a nuisance. In 2008, a couple moved into one of the bungalows and they won his favour by offering him food and love daily. Kaalu was eventually convinced to move in with them.
Five years later, the couple moved to Cholsey in England and Kaalu agreed to leave his motherland to be with them.
Kaalu, now about 14, has been living in England for five years. He subscribes to the left-leaning The Guardian, and not The Telegraph. The village is full of liberals, gardens, flowers (especially pink, cerise and white peonies), grassy fields and the sky looks blue in the absence of English clouds. The private lawn in the house is full of white daisies. Yet, Kaalu is often seen lying under a cot; apparently he hasn’t forgotten his homeless days when he would sleep under cars parked on Jorbagh roadsides.
Does Kaalu miss Delhi? We don’t know. When it comes to the city of his birth, he keeps his feeling to himself.
Kaalu in England
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Bhai MAS, re: pic-3, Kalu is pretending to be “Momo” lol
What a beautiful story Mayank. Such wonderful people to take in a stray, love him and give him a safe home despite the personal and financial cost. Angels do walk amongst us.
Eileen