This particular heritage walk was unusual. The audience was 9-10 year old kids who had come to Lodi Garden to celebrate their friend, Arhan Vohra’s birthday. Everyone had questions to ask even before the walk started; some had done their homework and collected information about the monuments they were to see. So they often ended up answering each others’ questions…each arguing to defend their own version of the story. Historically correct or not, these kids are rich with imagination. They could see secret passages in corners, palaces & courts in ruins, secret codes in calligraphy…imagination is indeed a wonderful gift. One hopes and wishes that this gift is not lost on their path to adulthood. Everyone admired the decoration in the mosque but was critical of the graffiti left on the walls engraved by lovers, perhaps seeking to immortalize their names. Such a sensibility is admirable. Everyone present promised never to deface monuments. The graves in Shish Gumbad were extremely fascinating: one had a garland around it, probably left by someone wishing to pay respect to the dead; there was a child’s grave too. Next was a story-weaving game based on the heritage walk. The sheer variety of themes woven by these youngsters & the characters they made up is incredible: Lodi kings, their courts, their dancing girls, wars, secret codes, detectives to crack the secret codes, armies, peace, even Gandhi, Sherlock Holmes and Albert Einstein!

(posted by Rajesh Ranjan & Kanika Singh, team members, Delhi Heritage Walks)

Lodi Garden Heritage Walk

It’s foggy & very cold but no let up on the traffic in old Delhi. We started the walk amidst blaring of horns and shouts of everybody who happened to be on the street. The Red Fort was only an outline in the winter fog. The Digamber Jain Lal mandir, which happens to be the oldest Jain temple in old Delhi & Gauri Shankar temple were to our left. Across the road as the shops selling flowers & other offering made to the temple including dhatura (a poisonous weed). This entire area right up to where the SBI building on Chandni Chowk is was the estate of Began Sumroo. It is now known by the name of Bhagirath place is one of the largest markets of duplicate electric goods. Continue Reading This Post

The advantage of starting early was that the Red Fort complex was not crowded. Otherwise on holidays and in evenings one always sees a huge rush…this is a prime tourist destination after all. One enters from the Lahori gate. The shops in Chhatta Chowk weren’t open yet. There are some beautiful murals in the music gallery (Naubat Khana), unfortunately, they are badly deteriorated. One can see the different layers of paint on the wall done over several years. The Naubat Khana now has the Indian War Memorial Museum. The Diwan i Aam or Hall of public audience was our next stop. It is an extremely elegant sandstone building. This is the place where Shahjahan held court daily. The marble throne canopy with its delicate inlay work is awesome! The riverside pavilions are few of the private palaces of the royal family that still exist. The Mughal buildings we see in Red Fort today are only about 20% of all that existed originally. Continue Reading This Post

We started the walk at Jama Masjid. It is one of the most impressive monuments in Delhi. And is one of the largest mosques in Asia. The view from the minaret was hampered by the morning fog. We could only see parts of old Delhi, rest of the area including Red Fort and beyond was not visible. Priya Gangadharan, the walk leader explained the history of the area and its immense heritage. The group made their way into the narrow kuchas and katras of Shajahanabad, starting with Gali Guliyan, which specializes in brass & copper antiques. The lane leads to Kucha Hamid, where one of the master builders of Shahjahanabad lived. Digambar Jain Naya Mandir was the next stop. Throughout, we could see finely decorated gateways of havelis, especially in Katra Khushal Rai. Naughara in Kinari Bazar with its Jain temple is one of the better preserved residential areas. It has nine houses in a lane, hence the name. The Kinari bazaar was simple bustling with activity. It is amazing for the visitors to see men, vehicles, and beasts all negotiating the narrow lanes and without any apparent hostility or competition! We ended the walking tour at parathewali gali.

(posted by Rajesh Ranjan & Kanika Singh, team members, Delhi Heritage Walks)

Chandni Chowk Heritage Walk