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Month: May 2020

Mission Delhi – Deepak Dialani, Paharganj

by The Delhi Walla - 0

One of the one percent in 13 million. [Text and photos by Mayank Austen Soofi] From early morning till late in the night, the lane would be teeming with crowds. The cafes would fill up with guests ordering lemon ginger tea and the Israeli dish of Shakshouka. The restaurants would play Buddhist tantra music. The pavement mehendi wallas would be drawing elaborate hennas on arms and ankles. And inevitably, there would be touts to whisper into your ears, “Do you want ganja?” This was Paharganj, Delhi’s bustling hotel district, particularly popular among foreign backpackers. But they are no longer to be seen. And neither is the rest of the crowd. “Bilkula sannata (total silence),” says Deepak Dialani, Paharganj’s longest surviving bookseller whose little shop in

Mission Delhi – Dino, Udyog Vihar

by The Delhi Walla - 1

One of the one percent in 13 million. [Text and photos by Mayank Austen Soofi] Dino is socially very active. Not in real life but on social media. His Instagram account, @dino_thesuperdog, is as old as him—3 years. And his handle has 4,831 followers. In real life, he is a much quieter soul. Very calm. He rarely barks. Dino is a labrador. He was born in Hyderabad and arrived in Gurgaon's Udyog Vihar in the Greater Delhi Region last year in March, with a roommate who works in the advertising industry. This evening Dino is chatting on WhatsApp, his photos taken through the phone screen that connects him to The Delhi Walla. “Actually, Dino has no conception of mobile phone,” says his roomie, “but he

City Series – Natasha Khalid in Karachi, We the Isolationists (281st Corona Diary)

by The Delhi Walla - 0

Our corona diary. [Text and photo by Natasha Khalid] I close my eyes in self-isolation from corona... and I see a picturesque valley surrounded with lush green trees, flowers enchanting, moors, ponds, and birds chirping. The skyline is visible with clouds afloat. A breathing space with a view that imparts serenity. A place where I breathe in fresh without a mask compressing my nostrils. A place where I get time to stop and smell the roses. These days as I dwell the quarantined life, I am frustrated by my restricted ability to be a human being rather than a human doing. “We the Isolationists” series urges folks from any part of the world to share a brief diary starting with “I close my

City Series – Jabeen in Trivandrum, We the Isolationists (280th Corona Diary)

by The Delhi Walla - 0

Our corona diary. [Text and photo by Jabeen] I close my eyes in self-isolation from corona... and I see a montage of things that could've been, had been, and will never happen. I am growing anxious day by day with the weighing uncertainty,...over everything. A fear of disillusionment, fear of failure, fear of unfamiliar days, fear of an uncertain future... I am too cowardly to sleep limitlessly. The only thing that keeps me surviving through this fog is the stack of books beside me. “We the Isolationists” series urges folks from any part of the world to share a brief diary starting with “I close my eyes in my self-isolation from Corona... and I see...” Not more than 100 words. With a horizontal-sized

City Series – Zoya Ahmed in Karachi, We the Isolationists (279th Corona Diary)

by The Delhi Walla - 0

Our corona diary. [Text and photo by Zoya Ahmed] I close my eyes in self-isolation from corona... and I see a beautiful space where there are no races, no colour or creed--only humanity and love. This space is full of art, and particularly classical music, and everything and everyone is connecting one another. We are looking at each other, and through our eyes, peeking into each other’s hearts... and there is warmth and empathy and compassion. “We the Isolationists” series urges folks from any part of the world to share a brief diary starting with “I close my eyes in my self-isolation from Corona... and I see...” Not more than 100 words. With a horizontal-sized selfie, along with your city name... please mail

City Series – Christina Autefault in Milan, We the Isolationists (278th Corona Diary)

by The Delhi Walla - 0

Our corona diary. [Text and photo by Christina Autefault] I close my eyes in self-isolation from corona... and I see my 'to be read shelf' above the one with the volumes I have already devoured!! Reading has once again kept me sane and fed my soul. As long as you can read, write and learn, you can get through anything! One should always carry a book, a pen and paper! The best book award for this period of confinement would go to Miss Iceland - Ava Audur Olafsdottir. Some of the best thoughts I have read about living on island, travel and the art of creation. “We the Isolationists” series urges folks from any part of the world to share a brief diary starting with

City Series – Vikram Mervyn in Chennai, We the Isolationists (277th Corona Diary)

by The Delhi Walla - 0

Our corona diary. [Text and photo by Vikram Mervyn] I close my eyes in self-isolation from corona... and I see all the dead people in my memories kiss my cheeks, like the smoke from a cigarette that you try to hold with just your lips. The smoke always gets in my eyes. It always makes me tear up. Four cigarettes in, I realize it is the torch of mankind. A babe of flame, within the tips of adolescent fingers, invented to cure the sorrow of all the itches of boredom and contemplative scars left behind on the cravasses of your brain. Go on. Close your eyes. Take another drag. “We the Isolationists” series urges folks from any part of the world to

City Series – Tanvi Kaliraman in Jind, Haryana, We the Isolationists (276th Corona Diary)

by The Delhi Walla - 0

Our corona diary. [Text and photo by Tanvi Kaliraman] I close my eyes in self-isolation from corona... and I see one of the 'waking up early' days when my eyes finally kiss the sunrise. While detangling my hair with mild breeze, sun tells me about his last day and that I am just like him. I said, "How could I ever be? I am not channelized or famous or respected or anything you need not wish to be. I am just a messed up girl with doubts, imperfections, never ending procrastination and no self esteem." He told me that it was never about that. Neither he is any of them, nor am I. He said it is all about giving light, for someone to shine,

Delhi’s Proust Questionnaire – Polish Ambassador Adam Burakowski , Tilak Marg

by The Delhi Walla - 0

The parlour confession. [Text and photos by Mayank Austen Soofi] The Proust Questionnaire represents a confessional game that owes its structure to answers given by celebrated French writer Marcel Proust in two parties that he attended at ages 13 and 20 in the late 19th century. The Delhi Walla have brought these Parisian parlour confessions into the Indian capital to explore people’s lives, thoughts, values and experiences. The series interview folks from diverse backgrounds. So today, say hello to Adam Burakowski, the ambassador of Poland to India. Many other foreign envoys living in Delhi might be fluent in speaking at least one of the many Indian languages as part of their professional requirements, but Mr Burakowski’s passion for Hindi is due to his

Living History – Sristi Ray, Sector 24, Gurgaon

by The Delhi Walla - 0

Life during Corona. [By Mayank Austen Soofi] Coronavirus will become yesterday’s news sooner or later. That doesn’t change the fact that we are living through a crisis the like of which hasn’t been seen in generations. One day, a century later maybe, when the longest-living among us too would begin to die, newspapers would commemorate the event as the passing away of the last of the people who lived through the world-altering Covid-19 pandemic. In brief, big-time history is happening now. And The Delhi Walla is trying to prepare a part of its first draft by putting a set of questions about ‘daily life these times’ to people from diverse backgrounds. Today, it’s Sristi Ray, a Master’s student in English literature. In her

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