City Moment – Annie Ernaux Starts Singing, Lodhi Gardens Moments by The Delhi Walla - March 1, 2023March 1, 20230 The perfect Delhi instant. [Text and photo by Mayank Austen Soofi] “The black, pensive, dense, domes of the mausoleums suddenly shot birds into the unanimous blue” This is the entirety of “In The Lodi Gardens”, a poem by a Nobel laureate in literature. This morning, another Nobel laureate in literature enters the Lodhi Gardens, fully prepared to be seduced by this central Delhi sanctuary speckled with flowers, trees, birds, and centuries-old stone edifices. Author Annie Ernaux is in the city as a special attendee at the Delhi Book Fair. Her brief stay in the capital has been entirely claimed by appointments, interviews and speeches, and this excursion is a non-violent revolt to her tightly packed schedule, fixed weeks in advance. By stepping into the park, she
City Season – Annie Ernaux & Bougainvillea Blossoming, Around Town Nature by The Delhi Walla - March 1, 20230 The face of bougainvillaea. [Text and photo by Mayank Austen Soofi] Now we know the true face of bougainvillea. It has searching eyes, blond hair, a glorious glow, and, on cool evenings, it holds a glass of white wine and wears a soft pashmina shawl over a blue-green cocktail dress. This is how the bougainvillea would look like if it were a person. The conclusion was reached on Saturday evening at the French ambassador’s residence, in Central Delhi’s Nyay Marg. A reception was being hosted for visiting French writers, in town to attend the Delhi Book Fair. The showstopper was Annie Ernaux, the 2022 Nobel laureate. As she stepped out into the garden, filled with fashionable Delhiites enjoying their access to an exclusive