‘When the Stranger says: “What is the meaning of this city? / Do you huddle close together because you love each other?” / What will you answer? “We all dwell together / To make money from each other”? or “This is a community”?’ — T.S. Eliot Recently, while travelling in a DTC bus in the… Continue reading Of my shahar and its stories, or how to love an ‘unloved’ city
Author: Samprati Pani
To walk or not to walk
‘Walking shares with making and working that crucial element of engagement of the body and the mind with the world, of knowing the world through the body and the body through the world.’—Rebecca Solnit I keep hearing many people in Delhi grumble that the city is not meant to be walked in—pavements are perpetually ‘in-repair’… Continue reading To walk or not to walk
It’s not about birds
birdwatcher a person who watches and identifies wild birds (Merriam-Webster) a person who watches birds in their natural environment and identifies different breeds, as a hobby (Oxford Learner’s Dictionary) I am not sure if I qualify as a birdwatcher according to the above dictionary meanings—I love watching birds and observing their antics but struggle with… Continue reading It’s not about birds
Dilli ke Dukaan
Delhi, like all cities, is animated by its large numbers and diverse kinds of vendors who populate its streets, alleys, pavements and bazaars. These vendors provide cheap (or not so cheap) goods and services and make for convenient shopping across classes, but more importantly, they enliven and embellish the otherwise plain streets, creating their raunaq.… Continue reading Dilli ke Dukaan
Becoming of and in Jantar Mantar
For all my years in Delhi, my encounter with Jantar Mantar has been as a landmark to guide autowallas, a road where protests take place in Delhi or as a locality to have a cheap snack at the South Indian Snack Centre aka Kutty’s, popularly identified as the Jantar Mantar South Indian joint. I had… Continue reading Becoming of and in Jantar Mantar
Monday ke Monday
The Peer (Monday) Bazaar in Nizamuddin Basti is one of the hundreds of weekly bazaars that pop up on different days of the week in different neighbourhoods of Delhi. What makes this bazaar unique is that it takes place during the day (between 9 am and 3 pm) unlike most other weekly bazaars which start… Continue reading Monday ke Monday
Chiragh Dilli 