City Hangout - Chapter 101 Bookshop, South Point Mall, Gurgaon

City Hangout – Chapter 101 Bookshop, South Point Mall, Gurgaon

The first edition paradise. [Text and photos by Mayank Austen Soofi] Next time some snob dismisses the world beyond Kapashera border as an all-mall-no-mind destination, tell that fellow to get lost in Gurgaon’s South Point Mall. The glass-walled shopping complex…

Our Self-Written Obituaries – Tanishka Goel, East of Kailash

Our Self-Written Obituaries – Tanishka Goel, East of Kailash

The 204th death. [Text and photos sent by Tanishka Goel] Ting. Ting. The Metro arrived on platform 2 of South Delhi’s Okhla NSIC station. Tanishka Goel ran in her favourite blue kurti, a book in her hand, to get into…

City Life - Ghaziabad's Sunset Boulevard, Vaishali Metro Station

City Life – Ghaziabad’s Sunset Boulevard, Vaishali Metro Station

The evening magic-realism. [Text and photos by Mayank Austen Soofi] Not everybody likes sunsets. They can be linked to serious melancholy, even a kind of death. (If you choose to think like that.) But there’s a healthier approach. For instance:…

City Landmark - Lieutenant's Bust, Atul Katarya Chowk, Gurgaon

City Landmark – Lieutenant’s Bust, Atul Katarya Chowk, Gurgaon

A roundabout homage. [Text and photos by Mayank Austen Soofi] Yellow butterflies are dancing over the white and blue flowers. On this muggy afternoon, they are the only visitors of this memorial to a fallen soldier. But others have come…

Mission Delhi - Sawan, Lodhi Road

Mission Delhi – Sawan, Lodhi Road

One of the one percent in 13 million. [Text and photos by Mayank Austen Soofi] What do we want in life but to be successful and happy? And what is to be done once that’s achieved but to rest from…

City Monument - St James' Church, Kashmere Gate

City Monument – St James’ Church, Kashmere Gate

Delhi’s Old Testament. [Text and photos by Mayank Austen Soofi] One of the capital’s great monuments built by the British is not in the British-built Lutyens’ Delhi. It lies beyond the limits of the Walled City, in Kashmere Gate. St…

Mission Delhi - Wilfred Noel, Indian Coffee Home

Mission Delhi – Wilfred Noel, Indian Coffee Home

One of the one percent in 13 million. [Text and photos by Mayank Austen Soofi] He’s so alone. Don’t you wonder that on spotting a companion-less person sitting still in an otherwise lively café buzzing with friendly chatter? That’s the…

City Landmark - Peepal Tree, Tiraha Behram Khan

City Landmark – Peepal Tree, Tiraha Behram Khan

A tree in the square. [Text and photos by Mayank Austen Soofi] Delhi is awash with great stone monuments, all over the place. But there’s another type of monument that deserves veneration. The fine old trees that you sometimes encounter…