Hauz Khas is one of the historic neighbourhoods in Delhi. The locality gets its name from the reservoir, Hauz i Alai, built by Alauddin Khalji for his capital city of Siri. About 50 years after Alauddin Khalji, Firuz Shah Tughluq restored the dried-up tank, built his own tomb and madrasa along its edge and called it Hauz Khas or ‘royal tank’. The madrasa complex is impressive even after more than 6 centuries. The tank, in a much altered state, still holds some water. The complex has remains of assembly halls, small-cell like rooms, a mosque and several tombs which probably of prominent members of the madrasa. Firuz Shah’s tomb stands at the junction of the 2 wings of the madrasa. Parts of the monument complex, including Firuz Shah’s tomb is currently undergoing restoration work by Archaeological Survey of India. This heritage walk covers monuments in Hauz Khas village and the adjacent Deer Park. There are 3 prominent monuments in the Deer Park: Lodi period tomb called Bagh i Alam ka Gumbad, and two Tughluq period tombs, the Kali Gumti and the Tuhfewala gumbad. Bagh i Alam ka Gumbad is much like the Lodi tombs in Lodi Garden. Continue Reading This Post

Delhi Heritage Walks & Mocha coffee shops jointly orgainse a heritage walk in Mehrauli Archaeological Park

19 December ’10, 10 am

register @ http://delhiheritagewalks.com/online-booking-regular.html

It always feels great to return in my dilli…purani wali 🙂 Winter has set in hence the walk timings have shifted from 7:30 in the morning to 10 am. The chill still remains but with tinge of sun rays it becomes best of weathers’ to walk around.

Chandni chowk- the axis in the city of Shahjahanabad with hustle bustle around the 1500 uniformly built shops is trying to retain the old charms. The city has seen many changes, most notably in 1857 & 1947. The people who made city may no longer be there…but their essence can be soaked through the remains of fragments left around. Our walk starts opposite Red Fort, from the famous Digamber Jain Lal Mandir. We walk along the main street in old Delhi, looking at its major landmarks: places of worship being the most notable (Gauri Shankar mandir, Digamber Jain Lal Mandir, Sisganj gurudwara, Sunheri Masjid). The shivalayas in the Katra Neel (commercial area for the Indigo merchants) is an apt example of how temples were built inside the courtyard of houses and the architecture is very similar to that of the Fatehpuri mosque at the end of Chandni Chowk. Continue Reading This Post

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:

The courtyard was soul-animating, and its expanse was life-giving. Its dusk was musk-scented, and its fragrance possessed the odour of amber…Nightingales, so to say, were singing their melodious songs everywhere. It appeared, as if they had guitars in their talons and flutes in their beaks.

Today, the view is equally grand. Continue Reading This Post

This year’s ample monsoon has added a new element of joy to our heritage walks. It is a treat to walk around imposing ruins of medieval cities, lush green parks dotted with peacocks, pleasant breeze and soft drizzle adding to the charm. This is how one would sum up this heritage walk at Hauz Khas village and Deer Park. The monuments in Hauz Khas are one of the most impressive in Delhi. The reservoir, Hauz I Alai was built by Alauddin Khalji for his capital city of Siri. A few decades later, Firuz Shah Tughluq found it ‘encroached upon’. The tank was silted up and people were selling of water from wells dug for their own private use. Firuz Shah has decided to fill it with water again, called it the Hauz Khas and built a madrasa along its edge. His own tomb stands at the junction of the two wings of the madrasa. In the 14^th century, the madrasa was one of the most prominent centers of learning in the Islamic East. Timur who camped here during his invasion in Delhi, was impressed by the scale and grandeur of the madarsa. Today, what we see is the bare structure which has survived over centuries. It is impressive none the less. Continue Reading This Post