Bombay 26/11 – Life in the Time of Terrorism General by The Delhi Walla - December 3, 20080 The Delhi walla's pretension in writing makes me want to lodge a bullet in his balls - Blogger Nimpipi, the woodchuck chucks GO STRAIGHT TO MORE STORIESContact mayankaustensoofi@gmail.com for ad enquiries.Bombay attacks have changed Delhi.[Text and pictures by Mayank Austen Soofi]New Delhi’s India Gate is one night’s train journey from Bombay’s Gateway of India, and now even that distance has been bridged in people’s minds after the 26/11 terror attacks in Bombay.On Sunday, a day after the siege at the Taj Mahal Palace & Tower ended, ex-hotelier Mrs Anupama Jaiswal, 31, took her husband and daughter for an outing to Dilli Haat. But Mumbai never left her mind. “I knew Taj hotel’s GM very well,” she says. While having samosas
City Landmark – Chabad House, Paharganj Landmarks by The Delhi Walla - December 1, 2008March 17, 20153 A home for travelling Jews. [Photos and text by Mayank Austen Soofi] Jewish skullcaps. Hebrew graffiti. Rabbi's hat tucked on the wall. Welcome to Jerusalem. Now come back to Delhi. We never left. It's just Paharganj and we are in Chabad House, a sort of a Jewish community club. With headquarters in Brooklyn, New York, Chabad Houses are established all over the world. Look for it in touristy places visited by Israelis. There is a Chabad House in Dharmshala, in Pushkar and one such was at Bombay's Nariman House. On November 26, 2008, it was attacked by terrorists and its caretaker couple were killed. With the tragedy still resonating in newspapers, I walked into Paharganj bylanes in search of Delhi's only Chabad House. It used
Bombay 26/11 – Pakistan for Mumbai General by The Delhi Walla - November 30, 20087 The Delhi walla's pretension in writing makes me want to lodge a bullet in his balls - Blogger Nimpipi, the woodchuck chucks GO STRAIGHT TO MORE STORIESContact mayankaustensoofi@gmail.com for ad enquiries.Not all Pakistani hands are stained with the Indian blood.[Compiled by Mayank Austen Soofi; picture by Arko Datta]This is a blogsite on Delhi. It should have nothing to do with Bombay or Pakistan. But these are extraordinary times. This is no time to go romantic about Old Delhi bylanes. On the day the siege of the Taj Mahal Hotel ended in Bombay, Aaj Tak, an Indian TV channel, announced that the hands of Pakistanis are now stained with the blood of Indians. I disagree. These are a few of Pakistan's
Bombay 26/11 – Delhi is Far General by The Delhi Walla - November 28, 20084 The Delhi walla's pretension in writing makes me want to lodge a bullet in his balls - Blogger Nimpipi, the woodchuck chucks GO STRAIGHT TO MORE STORIESContact mayankaustensoofi@gmail.com for ad enquiries.The show goes on in the Capital.[Text and picture by Mayank Austen Soofi]Bombay, the site of 27/11 terror attacks, is far from Delhi. Here the metro train is speeding towards Mandi House. The traffic light is turning green at Bhagwan Dass crossing. The Faridabad EMU is chugging on the railway overbridge. All seems normal.I walk to my office in Connaught Place. A colleague teases me about my Pakistan connections. "Mayank, you should no longer hang out with Pakis or you too will become a terrorist," she advices. "What does your
Dateline Bombay – Oh Taj, 26/11 General by The Delhi Walla - November 27, 200818 The Delhi walla's pretension in writing makes me want to lodge a bullet in his balls - Blogger Nimpipi, the woodchuck chucks GO STRAIGHT TO MORE STORIESContact mayankaustensoofi@gmail.com for ad enquiries.All Delhi wallas are Mumbaikars today.[By Mayank Austen Soofi; above picture taken by Arko Datta]Today Delhi has become Bombay. The Delhi Walla is now a Bombay Walla. I talked to a few eminent people who shuffle their time in both cities.Anjolie Ela Menon, Delhi-based painterI was at home in Nizamuddin East when news channels broke the news. My son is visiting Bombay and I was panicked. But he is safe in Shivaji Park. However a businessman friend of mine is trapped in the Taj.Anita Kaul Basu, TV producer, spends time
Capital View – The Best of Delhi General by The Delhi Walla - November 25, 200812 The Delhi walla's pretension in writing makes me want to lodge a bullet in his balls - Blogger Nimpipi, the woodchuck chucks GO STRAIGHT TO MORE STORIESContact mayankaustensoofi@gmail.com for ad enquiries.What do ex-Delhi wallas miss about the city.[Text and pictures by Mayank Austen Soofi]I love Delhi. Imagine my distress when I met Craig and Tracy, my American friends who have been living in the Capital for two years, and now in the process of relocating to London. Craig said he is ecstatic at the thought of getting rid of Delhi.He was too frank.Tracy nudged him softly and Craig changed his tone, changed his expressions and said with a click of tongue that they would miss the friends they made here.
City Classic – Sablok Clinic, Daryaganj General by The Delhi Walla - November 23, 200811 The Delhi walla's pretension in writing makes me want to lodge a bullet in his balls - Blogger Nimpipi, the woodchuck chucks GO STRAIGHT TO MORE STORIESContact mayankaustensoofi@gmail.com for ad enquiries.The Capital's legendary sex clinic promises a 'cure' for homosexuality.[Text and pictures by Mayank Austen Soofi]Other than gonorrhea, syphilis, impotency, night discharge, the city's legendary gupt-rog clinic discreetly claims to cure gay men of their homosexuality.Sablok Clinic, in its own words, is one of the "oldest and most authentic sex clinic." Established by Mr Hakim Hari Singh Sablok in 1928 at Lahore, it shifted to Delhi after the Indian partition.Since then by advertising itself with pictures of happy-looking straight couples, Sablok clinic has grown to be a part of Delhi's
Maximum City — Being Indian in the Indian Capital General by The Delhi Walla - November 18, 200812 The Delhi walla's pretension in writing makes me want to lodge a bullet in his balls - Blogger Nimpipi, the woodchuck chucks GO STRAIGHT TO MORE STORIESContact mayankaustensoofi@gmail.com for ad enquiries.A lady from Northeast India is called 'chinky noodle' in Delhi.[Text and picture by Mayank Austen Soofi]One day Ms Sonam Tsomo was the eldest BA-pass daughter of respectable middle-class parents (papa in fire brigade, mummy a housewife). The next, she is in the capital of her country and ceases to be respectable. Instead, she's an easy catch, a "chinky noodle", a "Chinese", a woman who is asked her "rate" as she walks down the road. Those slurs have nothing to do with who Ms Tsomo is – but
City Life – Spit Please, This is Delhi General by The Delhi Walla - November 15, 20082 The Delhi walla's pretension in writing makes me want to lodge a bullet in his balls - Blogger Nimpipi, the woodchuck chucks GO STRAIGHT TO MORE STORIESContact mayankaustensoofi@gmail.com for ad enquiries.The capital has a rich spitting culture.[Text and pictures by Mayank Austen Soofi]The forcible ejection of saliva from one’s mouth can hardly stir a city like Delhi. People do it all the time. Delhi Metro has a fine of Rs 200 for it. College campuses have lecturers who spray, not speak.However, on November 6, 2008, all hell broke loose in Delhi University when a young man spat on the face of Professor SAR Geelani, a lecturer at Zakir Hussain College. Mr Geelani was attending a seminar while the spitter was
City Walk – ITO Crossing, Central Delhi Walks by The Delhi Walla - November 12, 2008November 13, 20104 One morning at Delhi's most irksome traffic intersection. [Text and pictures by Mayank Austen Soofi] Not again! My Blueline stuck in the traffic jam at ITO. I curse the bus, the city, and kick my way out of the chicken coop. I run up on the footbridge escalators (yes, an escalator!), show my thumb to the people below, and hop, skip, jump to the other side. 9-6 muggles glumly walking past Delhi Police headquarters to their highrises. What’s this nukkar-ish place: rickety stalls, mangy dogs, lafanga boys and a... chhola bhathura stall. I’m starving! Rs 10 for a plate and worth the grease. Run by a guy from Faridkot, this stall is pumping up people’s paunches since 1978. Why are so many young men