Mission Delhi – Billi, East of Kailash
[Text and photos by Mayank Austen Soofi] The cat quietly ambles towards him, circles around his feet—slowly and thoughtfully—as if she were an elderly neighbor taking a walk in the park. The masked man in red sandals doesn’t seem startled…
Mission Delhi – Hrishikesh Shende, Gurgaon
[Text and photos by Mayank Austen Soofi] Every night around ten, after his daughter Kimaya has been tucked into bed, and while his wife, Sumran, is watching TV in the guest room, he walks up to his living room. He…
Mission Delhi – Shiraz Muhammad, Central Delhi
[Text and photos by Mayank Austen Soofi] The walker can have many uses. Shiraz Muhammad discovered it not long after acquiring one for himself, following a leg injury. “You cover the walker with a cloth, sit down under it and…
Living History – Usha Alexander, Sector 24, Gurgaon
Life during Corona. [By Mayank Austen Soofi] At this time of the year, she must be in the US, visiting her mother. Or, may be she is travelling in East Asia. But no, she is still in Sector 24. Author…
Mission Delhi – Priyanka Chauhan, Golf Course Road
[Text and photos by Mayank Austen Soofi] She has been writing since she was a student attending Raghunath Girls College in Meerut town. “But I don’t consider myself a writer,” says Priyanka Chauhan. She’s chatting this morning on WhatsApp video…
Mission Delhi – COVID Doctor Arushi Saili, Janakpuri
One of the one percent in 13 million. [Text and photos by Mayank Austen Soofi] She is a doctor, assigned to the Intensive Care Unit (ICU) of Safdarjung Hospital’s dedicated Covid-19 facility, in Delhi. In other words, she attends to…
City Walk – Gali Kebabian Street, Matia Mahal
Beyond Karim’s. [Text and photos by Mayank Austen Soofi] The shutters are pulled down. The doorways are closed. The place is empty. This is Karim’s, in Old Delhi. From early morning to late night, the iconic restaurant would always be…
City Obituary – Kaloo, Jorbagh, South Delhi, & Cholsey, England
The passing away of an extraordinary life. [By Mayank Austen Soofi] He was born and grew up on the rough Delhi streets. Later in life, when it would rain, he began sleeping on the verandah of a bungalow in Jorbagh…
Julia Child in Delhi – Nafisa Adiraju’s Kutchi Dabeli, Sohna Road, Gurgaon
The great chef’s life in Delhi. [Text and pictures by Mayank Austen Soofi] Her Instagram handle (@spicestori), that she launched in the beginning of the coronavirus-triggered lockdown, is nothing but emotional atyachar (torture). It is filled with pictures of yummy…
City Series – Julia Julley in Varna, Bulgaria, We the Isolationists (396th Corona Diary)
Our corona diary. [Text and photo by Julia Julley] I close my eyes in self-isolation from corona… and I see myself at the airport after the quarantine is lifted. I am a frequent long-distance traveller on my way to India,…
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