As a student, I was a regular at the Sunday book market of Daryaganj or what was called the Patri Kitaab Bazaar, where I’d hunt for classics after classics from the piles of old books. Books which told myriad stories, and no, I do not mean just the stories within, but also the stories of the people who previously owned them.
Many of these books stood the test of time and were passed down from generation to generation, only to find themselves in these piles, because they eventually became “raddi” for someone and a treasure for book lovers like me. My bookshelf today houses many such books, which I have preserved and go back to from time to time - they carry within them a whiff of a bygone time.
Last week, like every winter since my graduation days, I found myself in the maze that is ‘Purani Dilli’. I snaked through the packed bylanes, avoiding being hit by cycle rickshaws and e-rickshaws that swerved through the cluttered lanes, where unfazed pedestrians and eager shoppers and tourists continued to indulge in the chaos that comes with Dilli-6!
As I walked from Dariba Kalan towards Jama Masjid and then took a confident right turn from the police station, only to enter the quiet lanes of Dharampura opposite it, I felt a sense of pride that only a true Dilli-waala can feel. The fact that I know how to navigate the labyrinth of Old Delhi without anyone’s guidance is an attestation to that.
While walking towards my destination, I resisted the urge of getting inside many silver jewellery shops, even as the rustic designs were calling out to me. As if that wasn’t all, the aromas from fresh samosas being fried, to the hot nankhatais on carts, to the pista kulfi dunked in luscious rabri which seemed attractive even in single digit temperatures – the temptations were hard to resist.
Dharampura in Old Delhi gets its name from the testament of multiple religious communities peacefully coexisting in that area. There stands Haveli Dharampura, a restored haveli that has seen multiple ownerships, with the original ownership dating back to the Mughal era and thereafter being transferred to a Jain family, before it was purchased by the current owners, who have restored the place, keeping the original glory intact. I
t is like stepping inside a portal which takes you back to a different era, as soon as you step inside the brass gates that open up to a three-storey structure built around a central courtyard, or ‘aangan.’
“My father’s love for Old Delhi is unparalleled and it is his vision that has transformed this haveli into what you see today”, shares Vidyun Goel, Director of Haveli Dharampura and Golden Haveli. Former Union Minister and Lok-Sabha member from Chandni Chowk, Vijay Goel is the man behind the transformation of these once dilapidated structures. The efforts behind the restoration have won the UNESCO award too.
We notice the confluence of cultures that is Purani Dilli, over some chai and namak and shakkar paare, while standing on the terrace of Golden Haveli, from where one can see Sisganj Gurudwara, Central Baptist Church and Lal Mandir on one side and the Jama Masjid, on the other.
The haveli today is part of many heritage walks and is famous amongst the foreign tourists specially, with celebrated actors like Willem Dafoe having stayed there more than once.
There are stories everywhere in Chandni Chowk - starting from its name itself, its relevance in the country’s history, to it being a place where order exists even in chaos. In between the stories one can find people finding comfort in food, old jewels, heady spices and Mirza Ghalib’s poetry ringing through the walls of the walled city.
In Ghalib’s own words - “Ik roz apni rooh se poocha, ki dilli kya hai, to yun jawab main keh gaye, yeh duniya mano jism hai aur dilli uski jaan” (I asked my soul, ‘What is Delhi?’ It replied: ‘The world is the body, Delhi its soul.”)
Vernika Awal is a food writer who is known for her research-based articles through her blog ‘Delectable Reveries’