Sayyids and Lodis: Guardians of Delhi till the Dawn of Mughals
For centuries, the Indian peninsula was somewhat protected from invaders and conquerors who were constantly marching between Manchuria and Arabia: it was protected by unfathomable seas on two sides and the mighty Himalayas on its northern border. The only access to the dusty lands of Hindustan was through the deadly Khyber pass. In the same […]
Doorways to the Past : Havelis of Shahjahanabad
Is it that difficult a midgame to silently step out of our immediate environs, to waft away almost seamlessly to a Past screened by that invisible wall of time, to imagine the cityscape of some 350 years back, to reach out and touch the olden society in history, standing at the center of the same […]
Colors of Spring at Lodi Garden
The Lodi Garden area has been called Bagh-i-Jud since 13th century, hinting that it was a Bagh or Garden in medieval times as well. Thereafter, it has been a royal burial ground for the Sayyid and Lodi emperors in the first part of 15th century. Its present avatar as a beautiful 90-acre landscaped garden dates […]
Feroz Shah Kotla: Abode of a Charitable King and Benevolent Djinns
The City and the Citadel: Imagine some 650 years back on a Friday, a stream of people arriving at the main western gateway – flanked by a bastion on either side – of the newly constructed city, by various means of transport : a mule, a carriage, or even by a palanquin; alighting under the […]
Dargah Hazrat Nizamuddin
‘The fire of your separation has burnt our hearts; The Storm of desire to meet you has ravaged our lives’ (‘Ae Aatish e furaqaat dil ha kabab kardah; Selaab a ishtiqat khanaha kharab karda’) Thus greeted Baba Farid at his Ajodhan khankah in modern day Pakistan, to Nizamuddin Auliya who, instead of accepting title of […]
The Chandni Chowk No One Remembers
The Past is another country. Warmed by the kindly sunshine, we explored Chandni Chowk of Old Delhi.. the city of the majestic Qila Mubarak, the Jama Masjid, the moon-lit avenue that Shah Jahan and Jahanara built like titans but finished like jewelers; that Delhi of Aurangzeb, where in 1675 Sikh Guru Tegh Bahadur and his […]
Unraveling the Invisible Jewels in the neighborhood of Old Fort
We walked along a small patch of the ‘Sadak-e-Azam’ or ‘UttaraPatha’ road from Mauryan times, rebuilt by Sher Shah Suri, and considerably upgraded by the British.. and explored few interesting sites that once dotted the river banks of Yamuna before it changed its course : one of city gates of Shergarh built by Sher Shah […]
Tughluqabad: The Sultan of Soul vs The Savior of Islam
“One who serves becomes the master” – Nizamuddin Auliya In the center of sprawling south Delhi, lies the massive Tughluqabad fort in six square kilometers of desolation, its major part still un-encroached by flames of the expanding megapolis which has already swallowed few other historic cities of Lal Kot, Siri, Jahanpanah to name a few. […]
Phoolwalon Ki Sair
Coinciding with the 202nd edition of the historic Phoolwalon ki sair, the walk started at Yogmaya temple and ending at Jharna in the Mehrauli village –somewhat in the reverse direction to the actual procession path. The procession of the pankhas, known as the phool Walon Ki Sair –a testimony to Hindu-Muslim harmony- started during the […]
A walk in the Mehrauli Ruins
Mehrauli archaeological park is littered with monuments from almost all phases of Delhi’s history, and it represents 1000 years of continuous occupation starting from Lal Kot built by Tomar Rajputs in 1060 AD, upto British Raj. Balban’s Tomb: Balban’s tomb is credited with the fist one to achieve Roman Arch and Dome design in Indian […]