Our Self-Written Obituaries – Vivien, Manipur General by The Delhi Walla - April 30, 20190 The 235th death. [Text and photo sent by Vivien] when my breath has stopped and my heart has worked enough And i lay still, bury me. bury me and not cremate me because I've polluted the world enough bury me not because I'm a christian and my body ought to be buried to be turned into earth just like the scripture says 'for dust thou art, and unto dust shalt thou return' sorry i don't do religion. bury me with the intention that my body decomposes and shares in giving new life, giving back to earth a lil of what I've taken. don't cement my grave or don't need any fancies, let the grass and wildflowers grow on me, if you really wish to, you can plant a tree?
City Landmark – The Summertime Pilkhan Tree, Feroz Shah Kotla Landmarks by The Delhi Walla - April 30, 20190 The perfect eye candy. [Text and photos by Mayank Austen Soofi] The blistering hot April is actually the kindest month. The world is now teeming with a kind of extraordinary beauty that you don’t have to seek by driving all the way to the hills of Nainital or Mussoorie. It’s lurking right here in our very own hapless city. Such as this spectacular tree—you have to see to believe it. This gigantic Pilkhan stands like an unvanquished sultan in the ruins of Feroz Shah Kotla, the fortress of Ferozabad, the fifth city of Delhi whose stones were used to build the foundations of Old Delhi. Sightseers visit this sprawl of history to survey its bleak monuments. The haunting remains of the great Jami
Mission Delhi – Dinesh Kumar, Style Plaza Mission Delhi by The Delhi Walla - April 29, 20190 One of the one percent in 13 million. [Text and photo by Mayank Austen Soofi] Broken chairs and discarded cardboard cartons litter the floor. The office is in shambles. The only indication that Dinesh Kumar is a travel agent is the small globe next to his laptop. “It wasn’t always like this,” reveals Mr Kumar. At 52, the travel agent has been ensconced for years in the basement floor of Gurgaon's Style Plaza shopping complex in the National Capital Region. There was a time, he recalls, before his business collapsed to its present state, “when I would wear a tie and I had a team of 8-9 people, each assigned to a separate computer”. The rise of online travel websites “finished my company leaving just
City Hangout – Touchy-Feely Gallery, National Museum Hangouts by The Delhi Walla - April 29, 2019April 29, 20190 Tangible way of experiencing the past. [Text and photos by Mayank Austen Soofi] It may be hard to resist grasping the Shiva sculpture estimated to be from the fifth century. Or perhaps playing with the deity’s large earrings. In fact, patrons are encouraged to get a feel of all the exhibits at the Anubhav Gallery in the National Museum. A poster on the wall says: “Please touch all exhibits…”. The gallery was meant to encourage the visually challenged when it was all set up a few years ago. The gallery has 22 replicas — its originals are also housed in another section of the museum — that offer a tantalising experience of tactile contact with the ancient world. Running one’s hand over an enlarged coin transports
Mission Delhi – Yaad Ram, Sadar Bazaar, Gurgaon Mission Delhi by The Delhi Walla - April 27, 2019April 27, 20190 One of the one percent in 13 million. [Text and photo by Mayank Austen Soofi] His slightly swirly moustache renders the 66-year-old ironing man in Gurgaon’s Sadar Bazaar in the National Capital Region with a certain measure of awe. Even more remarkable is his name. “Yaad means remembrance,” Yaad Ram confesses the fact shyly. This hot steamy afternoon, Mr Ram recalls that he left his village, Mator, in Alwar, Rajasthan, more than 40 years ago. He agrees to summon five memories—or “yaadein”—of his native place that he holds dear to his heart. 1. We had a talaab (pond) near our village. It was as large as the chowk here in Sadar Bazaar. I would swim daily with my friends during the afternoon hours.
Home Sweet Home – A Mother’s Handmade Cradle, Central Delhi Pavement Delhi Homes by The Delhi Walla - April 26, 2019April 26, 20190 Baby's swing. [Text and photos by Mayank Austen Soofi] Baby Aslam is lying snugly in his padded swing hanging from a tree while Mom keeps a watchful eye out for him. “He’s just turned three months,” says content-looking Firdaus, a ragpicker in her early 20s who lives on this very central Delhi pavement together with her husband, also a ragpicker, and their three other children hovering about. Her husband is still working, she explains, adding that they often leave all their kids to the care of fellow pavement residents. Without any hesitation whatsoever. “I made the cradle myself, just took a day to sew it up,” reveals Firdaus without betraying any hint of pride in her skills. She managed to obtain a baby car
City Hangout – Central Park, Defence Colony Hangouts by The Delhi Walla - April 25, 2019April 25, 20191 Public garden anthropology. [Text and photos by Mayank Austen Soofi] Cool breeze and chirpy birds. Two morose seeming lovers. A man lying flat on the grass. Such are the scenes of an ordinary afternoon in Central Park. Built upon what used to be a stinky drain, this public garden in South Delhi’s upscale Defence Colony (DefCol) is a long stretch of lawn flanked on both sides with beautiful houses that only a few of us can afford. Right now the place isn’t really teeming with many people, perhaps the crowd will come a little later when the temperature drops to more tolerable levels. But there are two foreigners taking a stroll, followed by young Ravi, accompanied with Google, his “sahib’s” dog who has
Our Self-Written Obituaries – Mrittika, Bangalore Farewell Notice by The Delhi Walla - April 24, 2019April 24, 20190 The 234th death. [Text and photo sent by Mrittika] Mrittika, 27, was found lifeless by a lively corner of Iskcon Temple, her lively abode for the last 7 years. Mrittika was known to have appeared at the footsteps of the temple with a few inscriptions of the English band, Porcupine Tree, on her forearm, something that a Sadhika wouldn't normally qualify with. Citing the inscription, she claimed, it was "the start of something beautiful". Some say that it was an excuse for her to escape reality. You see, when you are a Sadhika, no one questions your plump bottle of rum, the kush in your pockets, lice in those locks and lastly, your unbiased love for sarees. According to the residents of
City Faith – Hazrat Qutub Shah Chishti’s Sufi Shrine, Outside the Election Commission of India Headquarters Faith by The Delhi Walla - April 23, 20190 A pilgrimage by an office block. [Text and photos by Mayank Austen Soofi] No one’s here. It’s all as quiet as a graveyard. The very air is suffused with a profound essence of utmost peacefulness. This can be the tip of the universe. But this is in the city’s heart. This little Sufi shrine to Hazrat Baba Khwaja Qutub Shah Chishti is above earthly concerns. Tucked just beside the headquarters of the busy Election Commission of India on Ashoka Road, a vase of plastic flowers is its only extravagant decoration. Otherwise, an earthen lamp glows steadily, honouring this barelyknown saint: cocooned from the glaring sun under a leafy neem tree and shielded by a roof of black cloth. This afternoon, at least, the shrine is
City Life – Friends Outside Facebook, Shivji Park, Gurgaon Life by The Delhi Walla - April 22, 2019April 22, 20190 Offline Relationships. [Text and photos by Mayank Austen Soofi] It is rare these days to come across folks who aren’t on Facebook. That’s why these three gentlemen sitting in a hair-cutting salon in Gurgaon’s Shivji Park seem so special. Perhaps they are on Instagram, you may wonder. Bad guess. They have no clue about it. These middle-aged citizens of the Futuristic City are nonetheless still able to enjoy a life untouched by social media. “We don’t need Facebook to gossip,” says Suresh, the shop’s barber, laughing. The other two are Lalaji of the adjacent shop Lalaji Footwear and Ramniwas Kaushik, a bazaar landlord. The friends often pass the empty hours of their day “by not wasting time on mobile phone but in gupshup (chitchat),” says the