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

Pictures of heritage walk in old Delhi: Jama Masjid, Gali Guliyan, havelis in Katra Khushal Rai, Digambar Jain Naya Mandir, haveli where St. Stephen’s college began (Sheesh Mahal), Kinari Bazaar, Naughara & Parathewali gali. The landmarks were explained by Priya Gangadharan & Kanika Singh.

(posted by Rajesh Ranjan, team member, Delhi Heritage Walks)

Jama Masjid and Lanes of Old Delhi Heritage Walk

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