A heritage walk in old Delhi is always exciting: the noise, the colourful sights & the delicious smells of food being prepared, adding to the general enthusiasm of visitors & locals alike. This Sunday, seemed a little less crowded than usual. Of course the shrines like the Digamber Jain Lal Mandir, the Sisganj gurdwara and Gauri Shankar temple were bustling with activity. In contrast, the Fatehpuri Masjid at the end of Chandni Chowk is remarkably peaceful. We started our heritage walk at Digamber Jain Lal Mandir. This walk covers interesting points along the main street of old Delhi, the Chandni Chowk. Continue Reading This Post

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Lodi Garden, nicknamed as ‘Mecca of lovers’ or ‘Joggers Paradise’, is a large green space which includes a considerable variety of monuments, exotic and indigenous trees , flowers, birds like woodpeckers, barbet, hoopoe, kingfisher etc. This area, according to records, was referred as Jod Bagh, now we have an area named Jor Bagh, just south of the garden. This area saw many changes and developments of Muslim rule, British period and post- independence era. Continue Reading This Post

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The ruins in Hauz Khas village are among the most fascinating in Delhi. The neighbourhood gets its name from the reservoir, ‘Hauz i Alai’ built by Sultan Alauddin Khalji in early 14^th century, for his capital city of Siri. About 50 year after Khalji, Sultan Firuz Shah Tughluq restored the silted up tank, built a madrasa along its edge and called it the ‘Hauz Khas’. The massive madrasa complex along the lake was among the most important in the Islamic world in the 14^th century. Continue Reading This Post

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Among the many cities in Delhi one counts, our heritage walk this Sunday explored one of the lesser known of all these. The Tughluq king, Firuz Shah built a new capital city for himself, along the banks of the Yamuna and called it Firuzabad. This is present day area around ITO and Bahadur Shah Zafar Marg. It is believed to have been almost twice the size of Shahjahanabad (Shahjahan’s capital, the old Delhi of today) extending from Pir Ghaib in the northern Ridge to Hauz Khas in the south. Today only the inner citadel of this massive city survives, known by the name Kotla Firuz Shah. Continue Reading This Post

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(photos by Vinay Kumar of the heritage walk covering landmarks of 1857 uprising. He is a photography enthusiast and a regular at our walks)

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