City Life – Gali Chamre Wali, Old Delhi
Life of a lane. [Text and photo by Mayank Austen Soofi] Tak tak tak tak. An elderly man in an extra-maheen white kurta pajama is walking extremely slowly into the narrow gali. His metal walker is tap-tap-tapping the dusty ground…
City Neighbourhood – Pahari Bhojla, Old Delhi
‘Hood on the hill. [Text and photos by Mayank Austen Soofi] The congested mohalla of Pahari Bhojla is nestled about a pahari, a hill, and is said to have been the hideout of Bhojla daku, back when the Walled City…
City Hangout – Foot-Over Bridges of Delhi-Jaipur Highway, Gurgaon
The bridges of highway county. [Text and photo by Mayank Austen Soofi] So you too reach out for the tissue paper while watching reruns of Meryl Streep’s The Bridges of Madison County? That evergreen tearjerker is an adaptation of Robert…
City Hangout – Frangipani Yard, Nehru Park & Elsewhere
Heaven on earth. [Text and photos by Mayank Austen Soofi] Last night the moon broke and fell into pieces. Some of those pieces fell in central Delhi, close to the prime minister’s residence. In Nehru Park. See photo. Citizens obsessed…
City Hangout – The Delhi Walla’s Speech on Hazrat Nizamuddin Area, Sunder Nursery
Text of The Delhi Walla’s speech delivered during the release of DK Eyewitness Guide: Humayun’s Tomb, Sunder Nursery and Nizamuddin on April 29. [Photos by Narendra Swain of Aga Khan Trust for Culture] Hello friends. You know, I’d like to…
City Hangout – Dilli Gate Nukkar, Old Delhi
In the big city, a small town. [Text and photo by Mayank Austen Soofi] Khurja, Kalpi, Najibabad, Sandeela… these are the small towns where expresses never stop. The train hisses by the platform in great speed and arrogance. Sympathetic window-side…
City Hangout – Cyber Hub, Gurgaon
Ten years of the Hub. [Text and photo by Mayank Austen Soofi] Some shoppers are strolling down the promenade with a more easy-going stride than others. Some of those others are looking a tad dazed by the scale of things….
City Hangout – Secret Passageways, Connaught Place
Less seen spots. [Text and photos by Mayank Austen Soofi] Ducked in light and shade, some parts are refreshingly cool, some parts are on slow-roast. This arched passageway is breathtaking, evocative of the legendary arched bridge of Isfahan. Yet the…
City Faith – Ramzan Treats, Old Delhi and Around Town
Season’s evenings. [Text and photos by Mayank Austen Soofi] The Jama Masjid is lit for night. The facing street is jazzed up with lamps, buntings and selfie clickers. Salam Namaste to this evening in Ramzan, the Muslim month of quiet…
City Hangout – Shri Shakti Raj Park, Lajpat Nagar
The Lajpat nobody knows. [Text and photo by Mayank Austen Soofi] Begin, Muse, this poem to commerce. Sing it aloud, the way Homer chanted the names of ships and warriors of the Achaean army: Keshika Creations, Lucy Beauty Parlour, Apna…
Recent Comments