Delhi Metro - Dwarka Sector 21, Blue Line

Delhi Metro – Dwarka Sector 21, Blue Line

A last station’s romance. [Text and photos by Mayank Austen Soofi] They dot our landscape, more than 150 of them. And now The Delhi Walla is friends with arguably the most gorgeous of all those Metro stations in our sprawling…

City Moment - The Overworked Music Men of the Yellow Line, Rajiv Chowk Metro Station

City Moment – The Overworked Music Men of the Yellow Line, Rajiv Chowk Metro Station

The memorable instant. [Text and photos by Mayank Austen Soofi] They were apparitions in golden dhotis and pink jackets. One late night The Delhi Walla saw members of the Kirti music band. They were sitting inside a Metro rail coach….

Delhi Metro – Two Lovers in My Coach, Yellow Line

Delhi Metro – Two Lovers in My Coach, Yellow Line

Life on the Metro. [Text and photos by Mayank Austen Soofi] It was around 9 in the morning. The Delhi Walla was on the Yellow Line of the Delhi Metro. Ten minutes after leaving Chawri Bazaar Metro Station, the eight-coaches-long…

Delhi Metro – Divya Babu’s Commute With Proust, Pamuk, Dalrymple, Lahiri, Huda City Center

Delhi Metro – Divya Babu’s Commute With Proust, Pamuk, Dalrymple, Lahiri, Huda City Center

The book lover’s commute. [Text by Divya Babu; photos by Mayank Austen Soofi] I open William Dalrymple’s Return of a King: The Battle for Afghanistan. I look around and try to reposition my elbows in the best way possible. It’s…

Delhi Metro - The Wenger's Man, Blue Line

Delhi Metro – The Wenger’s Man, Blue Line

Life in the Metro. [Text and photos by Mayank Austen Soofi] 9 pm, Saturday night. The Delhi Walla is on the Blue Line of the Delhi Metro. The train halts at Mandi House. The platform is almost empty. Only one…

Metro Observed – Inside the Coaches-4, Delhi Subway

Metro Observed – Inside the Coaches-4, Delhi Subway

Life in the Metro. [Text and photos by Mayank Austen Soofi] The Delhi Metro commuters are great readers. Every person is spotted reading something or the other on the Smartphone. Sometimes, however, The Delhi Walla spots people actually reading a…

Delhi Metro – Nikhil Kumar's Commute With Vikram Seth, Barakhamba Metro Station

Delhi Metro – Nikhil Kumar’s Commute With Vikram Seth, Barakhamba Metro Station

The book lover’s commute. [Photos by Mayank Austen Soofi] Nikhil Kumar is interested in history and politics. He lives in Sector 10, Dwarka. And he read the whole of Vikram Seth’s novel A Suitable Boy while commuting on the Delhi…

Delhi Metro - Manika Dhama's Commute With Rebecca West, KG Marg

Delhi Metro – Manika Dhama’s Commute With Rebecca West, KG Marg

The book lover’s commute. [Text by Manika Dhama; photos by Mayank Austen Soofi] At 1,200 pages in tiny ant-lettering, it was an unwieldy choice for Metro commute reading. More than once during the course of the month I spent reading…

Metro Observed – Inside the Coaches-3, Delhi Subway

Metro Observed – Inside the Coaches-3, Delhi Subway

Life in the Metro. [Text and photos by Mayank Austen Soofi] No place like home, New York, New York. The Delhi Walla saw this man on the Delhi Metro Blue Line, somewhere between the Rajiv Chowk and Dwarka Sector 21…

Metro Observed – Inside the Coaches-2, Delhi Subway

Metro Observed – Inside the Coaches-2, Delhi Subway

Life in the Metro. [Text and photos by Mayank Austen Soofi] She was probably around twenty (see the photo above). She wore a purple sari with silver-colored designs that seemed to be patterned after flowers and leaves. Her arms were…