Located between Safdurjung’s tomb and Khan Market, there lies 90 acres of beautifully landscaped garden which was once a royal burial ground of Sayyid and Lodi royalty. Today, the monuments are surrounded by walking paths and jogging paths with trees, shrubs and flowering plants on both sides. The garden as we see today was designed in 1936 by the British when it was called Lady Willingdon Park. (more…)

Remember ‘khoob ladi mardani woh to Jhansi wali rani thi’ or ‘do gaz zameen bhi na mili kue yaar mein’? Rani Laxmi Bhai of Jhansi, her companion Jhalkari Bai, Tantia Tope, Mangal Pandey & Bahadur Shah Zafar: these are people from Indian history we have most often read about, their poetry of defiance or of despair, were all part of the experience of 1857. (more…)

The crowds at Chandni Chowk are an amazing sight, even on a Sunday morning when the market is officially closed. It is natural to be overwhelmed by the hustle-bustle of the people and traffic. From Digambar Jain Lal Mandir till Gurdwara Sisganj there were cars lined all along the road-of devotees to the Jain Mandir, Gauri Shankar temple, Central Baptist Church and Sisganj Gurdwara. Friends who visit the area are often surprised to find places of worship of all faiths so close to each other. But perhaps it is not such an unusual thing in the closely knit urban population as in our Purani Dilli. (more…)

Mehrauli Archaeological Park is one of the most interesting trails in Delhi. The route covers an archaeological site, the tomb of Sultan Balban, Jamali Kamali mosque & tomb, Thomas Metcalfe’s estate called Dilkusha (which consisted of a boathouse, Metcalfe’s follies, Mohd Quli Khan’s tomb converted into a residence) and a step well by the name Rajon ki Baoli. The walk was conducted by Kanika Singh & Kavita Singh, team members, Delhi Heritage Walks.

The image of the Qutb Minar is synonymous with Delhi. Much like India Gate, we find it on practically every book, pamphlet, publication on Delhi. There is no avoiding it in school textbooks or school picnics either! We have grown up reading about it, taking visiting relatives to the Qutb (that was before the Saket malls came up). The fact that it is one of the better maintained sites in Delhi has added to its popularity with both locals & tourists alike. And it also has a World Heritage Site tag to boot.  There is no doubt to Qutb’s importance to history & much of it is deeply contested. Our heritage walk here focused less on the Qutb Minar itself but more on the relationship of the Qutb to the surrounding monuments, their development in Delhi’s history & the anecdotes about people who shaped the site & thereby our ‘experience’ of it. (more…)