Delhi Joyceans – The Delhi Walla’s Speech on Bloomsday, 2022, at the Irish Ambassador’s Residence, Sardar Patel Marg General by The Delhi Walla - June 17, 2022June 17, 20221 Text of The Delhi Walla's speech delivered at the Irish ambassador's New Delhi residence on June 16. [Text and photos by Mayank Austen Soofi] Dear friends, whether we are “Stately, plump” or not, whether we are Dubliners or not, Happy Bloomsday to us all! First things first. Happy Birthday Milly Bloom. But, you know, I was surprised that yesterday it was me and only one other person in this big wide Internet who tweeted a birthday greeting to Milly. But of course we all who she is. We all read Ulysses, right? Leopold And Molly Bloom’s daughter, Milli, turned 15 yesterday—a line in the novel mentions that very fleetingly: in episode 4, line 415 in the Gabler edition. Really, when will people start reading Ulysses more
City Homes – Dayanita Singh’s Book Walls, Vasant Vihar Delhi Homes by The Delhi Walla - June 13, 2022June 13, 20220 Inside an artist's studio. [Text and photos by Mayank Austen Soofi] Dayanita Singh lives amid moving walls of her books. This afternoon, at her second floor studio in Vasant Vihar, the artist appears by sliding away one of the walls. These moving things make the space as full of possibilities as a kaleidoscope. The hall’s fixed (brick) wall is equipped with four sliding walls. As Ms Singh pushes away one, the chamber behind —her archive room—slowly comes into view. It’s like a two dimensional panorama gaining its depth. On the other side stands another book wall, leading to her printing room. “These are two of my books,” says Ms Singh, referring to these walls. “This side is File Room, and that side
City Food – Mr Hameed’s Roller Ice Cream, Rani Garden Food by The Delhi Walla - June 12, 2022June 12, 20220 Summer's fresh. [Text and photo by Mayank Austen Soofi] It’s not a common sight — well, the ice creams are but not the ice cream roller. On this hot muggy night, two men are stationed with their cart in a corner of Rani Garden lane, silently watching the pedestrians go by in the crowded street. One passerby stops to ask them what is the thing they are selling. They say fruit ice cream. The man looks on suspiciously and goes away without buying anything. Mr Hameed and his quieter cousin, who is shy of sharing his name, explain that they jointly operate the machine. The cart has plastic baskets filled with melons, papayas, apples and grapes (these just got over), and lots and
Mission Delhi – Muhammed Sabir, Near Ashram Mission Delhi by The Delhi Walla - June 12, 20220 One of the one percent in 13 million. [Text and photos by Mayank Austen Soofi] It is an afternoon in the heatwave. The road doesn’t have much traffic. A man is riding a cart. The cart is loaded with long, seemingly heavy iron rods. The iron rods are scalding-hot to touch. The rods are longer than the cart and their ends are tied with a red ribbon as a caution to the traffic behind. The man now stops to pedal. He gets off his seat and starts to drag the cart with the full force of his body. Stopping under a tree for a brief reprieve, he takes out a water bottle. The bottle is wrapped in a thick towel. He gulps
City Faith – Mandir Chaurasi Ghanta, Seetaram Bazar Faith by The Delhi Walla - June 12, 2022June 18, 20220 A temple with sound. [Text and photos by Mayank Austen Soofi] Tnnnnm. The sound at first has a sharp tone, and then wafts around the air, growing softer and calmer, passing along like a light breeze. After that it rushes out into the noisy bazar lanes, and fades. In all temples, bells must create the same pleasing effect. But the bells here have something most haven’t — the temple is named after them. Mandir Chaurasi Ghanta, in Old Delhi’s Seetaram Bazar, has chaurasi ghante, or 84 bells, affirms a visitor. She says that all the bells are linked together by a single chain “so that you can ring all the 84 bells at once.” The mandir consists of a hall with its entire roof studded
City Hangout – Barahpulla Flyover, Central Delhi Hangouts by The Delhi Walla - June 10, 20220 Best flyover. [Text and photos by Mayank Austen Soofi] This flyover has something unique: one always hopes for a traffic jam while one is on it. Why? Because of the view. And such traffic jam there is, one recent evening on Baba Banda Singh Bahadur flyover (also known as Barahpulla) in central Delhi. The stunning view is available to most commuters stranded there at the rush hour. Towards the left (if you are facing the direction of Noida), you’ll easily spot a monument whose dome is partly layered with white marble—looking like half-eaten icing on a cake (see photo). And behind it, slightly towards the right, stands another monument, which is a tad more graceful in its appearance. The first is poet Rahim’s tomb,
City Walk – Galli Shiv Prasad Street, Old Delhi Walks by The Delhi Walla - June 6, 20220 World of a street. [Text and photos by Mayank Austen Soofi] One night, the narrow Galli Master Shiv Prasad is lit up with electric lamps. The part where the lane ends into a cramped courtyard is filled with folks watching two boys dance to a film song. There is to be a wedding soon, someone reveals. It’s impossible to find out if any of the faces in the crowd might be related to the man after whom the street is named. The passage of time has made Master Shiv Prasad too elusive to catch. The story behind the place’s name has as many versions as the paratha fillings in Parathewali Gali. A nearby doodh wale describes Shiv Prasad as a musician who
City Landmark – Oberoi Hotel Flyover, Central Delhi Landmarks by The Delhi Walla - June 6, 2022June 6, 20220 Art of the street. [Text and photos by Mayank Austen Soofi] The friend’s the biggest enemy. The maxim is scrawled in black chalk on the wall of the Oberoi Hotel flyover, here in central Delhi’s Zakir Husain Marg (see photo). A great length of this wall is covered with Hindi graffiti, along with illustrations—a pistol, a kite, a human face drawn with two noses. Is this street art? Delhi is familiar with the concept. Some distance away lies Lodhi Colony, with its much eulogised artworks painted on house walls. Some days back, portraits of Jewish Hindi film actresses of yesteryears, including the iconic Nadira, were unveiled on a Connaught Place wall. One evening a foreign artist was seen painting that panel, graciously letting
City Life – Urmila & Jeetu, Patel Nagar Life by The Delhi Walla - June 6, 20220 Portrait of a marriage. [Text and photo by Mayank Austen Soofi] It’s noon, and they are directly exposed to the heatwave. She is standing barefoot on a mound of dug-up earth. He is in the ditch below. They are talking in low voices to each other. Labourers Urmila and Jeetu are working on a central Delhi footpath, just the two of them. “We always work together… he is my husband,” says Urmila. Jeetu explains that they get assignments through a contractor. But it must be severely challenging to work in such an adverse weather. Jeetu considers the supposition for a moment, and gazes towards his wife, as if she might have something to say. “No, we are fine,” she replies with a slight
City Landmark – Mango Tree, Deer Park Landmarks by The Delhi Walla - June 6, 20220 The bench under a special tree. [Text and photos by Mayank Austen Soofi] It is handsome, with a pleasant disposition, seeming to unite some of the best blessings of existence. It has lived here for many years, with very little to distress or vex its place in the world. This tree in south Delhi’s Deer Park generously exudes its happy-go-lucky temperament throughout the vicinity. A gloomy passerby walking through the park is bound to experience at least a fleeting rush of giddy emotions on seeing this landmark. If tree had human faces, this one would always be smiling. On this incredibly hot and humid evening, the entire park is swarmed with people from nearby Safdarjung Enckave, Hauz Khas Vilage, and Green Park who