The monsoons have blessed us a little late this year, but oh, what a treat are the rains! One of the good things about a heritage walk in Lodi Garden is has the terrain is easy to negotiate even in rains. The payments are well marked out & the trees look mighty refreshed after the rains! Hence we continued with our heritage walk in Lodi Garden, even though the clouds threatened to pour. I started with an introduction to the history of the area and why it was the chosen area for tombs of Sayyids and Lodis. Right from the early Islamic period to 2010 commonwealth games, this complex has seen several additions and changes. (more…)

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. A contemporary poet wrote in its praise: (more…)

(photos by Masha Barinova, a regular at our heritage walks. The above photos were taken during a food walk in old Delhi. Find more or Masha’s works @ http://mashabarinova.com/a91.html )

‘On the day of separation from you in helplessness and loneliness nothing consoles us but the sorrow we feel for you.

O Jamali, resort for protection to the door of the friend, for our refuge is the door of the beloved!’

There lie many a stories behind the picturesque ruins in Mehrauli. Delhi is well known as a historic city & within Delhi, Mehrauli is a minefield of historical & archaeological data. Our heritage walk in the Mehrauli Archaeological Park covers some stunning monuments which have incredible stories behind them! The above verse was penned by Maulana Jamali, a sufi & poet whose mosque & tomb gives the park its local name, Jamali-Kamali. (more…)

There are many landmarks of 1857 rebellion in Delhi. Delhi was one of the centres of the revolt & after the rebellion was suppressed, India officially became a British colony. By all accounts this was the greatest revolt faced by the British empire, even though they have stuck to the calling it the ‘mutiny’. There are many stories, diaries, histories, documentation of 1857 rebellion by the British which indicate the its impact on their lives & the empire. Naturally, many memorials were built to commemorate the dead on the winning side. (more…)