Atlas of the world. [Text and photos by Mayank Austen Soofi] Each time I long to fly to a foreign land, I simply go to Appetite German Bakery in Main Bazaar, Paharganj. The locality is close to the New Delhi railway station and teems with cheap hotels that pull in a lot of international tourists. One of the many cafes in the area, the Appetite German Bakery has friendly waiters and its Honey Ginger Lemon Tea is divine. Another charm there is to gaze at the foreign backpackers as they struggle with spiced paneer paalak and aloo gobhi. It is fascinating to watch the foreigners at the Appetite. Their private lives might remain elusive to us but their most mundane actions seem to be

The golden era. [Text and photos by Mayank Austen Soofi] So dashing! Author William Dalrymple looks like a MTV rock star at this long-ago book signing in The Book Shop. The Delhi Walla is in possession of rare photographs that belong to the famous bookstore in Jor Bagh Market. Some photographs are also of The Book Shop's other outlet that used to be in Khan Market and which today seems as mythical as the Old Delhi wall. The most eye-popping picture in this small bundle is that of KD Singh. By the time he died in 2014, the bookstore’s founder had become a legend. His white beard, tweed jackets and balmy-voiced chatter represented all that was genteel about Delhi. Here, however, we see

That city, its people, its temples. [Text and photos by Mayank Austen Soofi] The Delhi Walla was the on the 16th floor of a building when the earthquake tremors shook Delhi on April 25, 2015. Like everybody else on that floor, I too ran down the stairs. And while I thought I would die, I was not feeling particularly horrified. And I made sure to pick up my camera, my shoulder bag and my book of the day (Madame Bovary). This means that either I'm very materialistic or, perhaps, I want to live for some more time. But that quake killed many people in Kathmandu, Nepal. I had visited that city in 2013, and had walked down its many lanes and had

A street-side book-corner. [Text and photos by Mayank Austen Soofi] It's not amazon.com it's not amazon.com it's not amazon.com it's not amazon.com it's not amazon.com it's not amazon.com it's not amazon.com it's not amazon.com it's not amazon.com it's not amazon.com it's not amazon.com it's not amazon.com it's not amazon.com it's not amazon.com it's not amazon.com it's not amazon.com it's not amazon.com it's not amazon.com it's not amazon.com it's not amazon.com it's not amazon.com it's not amazon.com it's not amazon.com it's not amazon.com it's not amazon.com it's not amazon.com it's not amazon.com it's not amazon.com it's not amazon.com it's not amazon.com it's not amazon.com it's not amazon.com it's not amazon.com it's not amazon.com it's not amazon.com it's not amazon.com it's not amazon.com it's

The world of yesterday. [Text and photos by Mayank Austen Soofi] The old rusting car stood under a tree. Its grille was broken. The bonnet and the roof were covered with dry leaves. The windows were rolled up. The doors were locked. The steering wheel was cobwebbed. The Delhi Walla came across a discolored Premier Padmini outside a bungalow in Defence Colony. It was a rare sighting. This car is no longer in production. It is also no longer seen on the roads. One could see through the grimy windows that the seats were coated with thick layers of dust. The rear glass exhibited the dense foliage on the other side of the car. Through the windows, even those green leaves looked dusty

One last chance, Delhi. [Text and photos by Mayank Austen Soofi] It is poignant to see a common man proudly wearing a cap that proclaims, “I’m a common man.” One Saturday morning while walking around the Ramlila Ground, The Delhi Walla came across a number of men wearing such a cap. One of them said he was an auto-rickshaw driver. Another was a labourer. The mainly male crowd was heading to attend the swearing in ceremony of Arvind Kejriwal as the eighth Chief Minister of our poverty-stricken and polluted city. Mr Kejriwal is the founder-leader of the Aam Aadmi Party, or the Common Man Party. Not far away, a man in a purple sweater and grey pants was fast asleep in the passenger seat

Missing from life. [Text and photos by Mayank Austen Soofi] Mr. Mohamad Rafiq, Son of Mohamad Ismail Aged 62 yrs. an Afghan National, was missing on 29 May 2011, At 19.00 in Saket The Delhi Walla spotted this flier on a wall in Jangpura. Such notices are seen across the city. They often show badly-printed black and white photographs of the disappeared people. There is always a phone number to contact the relatives in case if anybody has any clue about the missing person. But do the passersby really take note of these lost people? Or, are these people now merely faces on the wall? Find me 1. 2. 3. 3a. 4. 5. 6. 7. 8. 9. 10.

Je Suis Charlie. [Text and photos by Mayank Austen Soofi] On January 7 2014, radical Islamists killed 12 people in Paris, the city that gave us the dangerous ideas of secularism, liberty and democracy. Therefore an attack on Paris hurts all of us. The Delhi Walla stands with Paris. Delhi is Paris 1. 2. 4. 5. 6. 7. 8. 9. 9a. 10.

The Delhi coffee table. [Text and photos of photos by Mayank Austen Soofi] In order to feel the intimate life of Delhiites, The Delhi Walla is going from house to house, requesting people to show their family photos. Here is the fifth installment. This album belongs to Ronald Vivian Smith, who lives in Mayapuri, west Delhi. Until a few decades ago, author Mr Smith was in the habit of daily walking across the streets of Old Delhi in search of stories about people and places. An identity card issued to him as a journalist by his employers in 1978 announced to whoever it might concern: “Mr R.V. Smith is employed by The Statesman Ltd., as Sub-Editor and his work involves attendance at