(pics by Chhavi Sharma & Ridhima Bahl, a regular at our heritage walks)

Doing what we’re passionate about and love the most comes with ease! Shahjahanabad is love and Delhi Heritage Walks a passion. 🙂

A cloudy day with waves of chilly wind and 12 of us gathered to take a walk on the historic lane of Chandni Chowk. Chandni Chowk was built as a main commercial lane after the establishment of Shahjahanabad city which is also known now as the walled city or purani Dilli/old Delhi

This beautiful city and its surroundings were destroyed more than once: in 1739 when Nadir Shah came, in 1857-Indians rebelled against the then British rising in power. The city hence developed socio-economically depending on political powers so was development seen in architecture. The Digamber Jain Lal Mandir and Gauri Shankar temple both came up while the Mughals were at the Red Fort, but the elaborate structures we see today are relatively recent phenomenon. Continue Reading This Post

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

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 Sish ganj gurudwara 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. A few places where we venture into a narrow lanes of the city: the Parathewali Gali, the Moti Bazaar, Katra Neel and perhaps the highlight of the walk, the spice market. On the way are the some of the most famous stalls of street food in old Delhi: well known shops like Ghantewala, Tiwari Brothers, Paratha shops, Chaina Ram, Old & Famous Jalebiwala and smaller but equally well known players like kulfiwala at Nai Sarak, Natraj for their dahi bhalle, faluda at Fatehpuri and many more. There are a few specialized bazaars on the old Delhi trail: Continue Reading This Post

It was a cloudy Sunday morning when I woke up just in time for my heritage walk. I had been very excited for a couple of days now, as this was going to be my 1^st walk as a leader. Confidence remained intact, partly being a Historian n partly because I BELONGED TO Place we were going to visit or say Chandni Chock resides in ME…

More or else everybody reached on time and met on the very first stop-Digambar Jain Lal temple. We have 8-9 stops in the Chandni Chowk heritage walk n I had to be thorough with each; its history and much more as one always expects intellectuals, educators, foreign delegates, inquisitive students ranging from class 5^th to university level to join us .Being a leader it becomes my utmost duty to be prompt to every question coming my way. Continue Reading This Post

What we call purani dilli or old Delhi today was the capital city of Shajahanabad in the middle of 17^th century. The Mughal Emperor built the Red Fort as his palace complex and the city as his capital. For them, the Mehrauli area would have been ‘old Delhi’. This heritage walk starts from the Digambar Jain Lal Mandir, opposite Red Fort. It is the oldest Jain temple in the city and a charitable bird hospital functions in its premises. The shrine is contemporary to Shahjahan’s time but the building we see now is mostly from middle of 19^th century. Adjacent to it is the Gauri Shankar temple, a large white building. It is an early 18^th century temple built by a Maratha nobleman. Walking along the Chandni Chowk we passed the State Bank of India building, one of the better surviving colonial buildings and the Central Baptish Church, a church built just after 1857. This entire stretch would have been the estate of a lady popularly known as Begum Samroo. She is one of the characters in Indian history who have many romantic or otherwise stories associated with her. Continue Reading This Post