Home Sweet Home – Abhinav Kakkar, Mahrauli
Mehrauli’s dream balcony.
[Text and photos by Mayank Austen Soofi]
With a balcony like this, who’d want to leave home?
Abhinav Kakkar freely admits his own balcony is a prime attraction—though as an independent photographer he’s usually on the move.
But when perched on his balcony in south Delhi’s historic Mehrauli “I just might sit here for long spells watching approaching planes and pondering the meanderings of life.”
As well as star-gazing, of course, on those days when the huge skies are blessedly smog-free, “and when a nearby friend can lend me his telescope!” says the 25-year-old.
The 4th floor view not only takes in the Qutub Minar monument but also a panoramic view of Gandak ki Baoli, a 14th century stepwell. The overall impression of Delhi itself, when seen from high, suggests a ramshackle metropolis where nature constantly runs rampant—poised to seize control.
Mr Kakkar gives The Delhi Walla the cook’s tour of his apartment where books hang like artifacts in the living room, while his comfy bedroom is adorned with fairy lights. Among the curios in the study: a vinyl player, and also an old typewriter packed inside a pretty case.
Across the street from the balcony the aforementioned baoli attracts many tourists. “When my friends come visiting they usually notice the dirty water, but for many neighbourhood women the water is sacred,” he explains. “They routinely turn up at the baoli to fill small vessels with its holy water.”
Now Mr Kakkar slouches on his balcony gazing towards the rising moon. Soon a dot-like object appears in front of it—and appears to be moving.
He says in all astuteness, “It’s only a plane.”
The sky and its environs
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