There are schools, colleges and buildings where people are taught. And, then there are institutions. I know with an opening like that I just put myself in a corner and lost a lot of latitude for this article. But it needed to be told. I have never studied at JNU (I am a DU product, highfives J), I have always been there as a trespasser for cheap food, the walks and the parthasarathy rocks. Lately, my wife has started working there, so that lends some…Continue Reading “Jawahar Lal Nehru University & the spirit of protest”
I have been living in Delhi for last 12 years. Like a typical resident of the city, I have said some bad and very bad, and still worse things about it. We are all cribbers, aren’t we? I can’t be living in a city I hate so much for such a long time. That will be insane. So, I am trying to focus on the good things, elements that I love. That reminds me of Mumbai. I love the city, its energy, its uninhibited ways, the…Continue Reading “An Appeal for an All Night Park in Delhi”
In colloquial Hindi, an owl is equated with an ass – ullu is same as gadha. It ranges from being an affectionate term to a mild abuse – meaning anything between a lovable fool to utter good for nothing. In Punjabi, ullu ka pattha (son of an owl) casts doubts on your genealogy and is a clear call for a fistfight. Those are a few unpleasant ways in which the poor bird is portrayed in this part of the world. But there is another side…Continue Reading “Barn Owl – Tyto Alba”
Dear Mai Baap, Let me begin by telling you that I consider it my good fortune to be born here, a great civilization that dates back thousands of years. I congratulate you on preserving so many things from those times – our society, its mindset, our attitude toward women, our infrastructure and the relation between the ruler and the ruled. I am sure we can teach the Egyptians a few things about preservation. No matter what others say, we must take pride in our heritage….Continue Reading “Thanks for Aadhar Card Circus, Mai Baap!”
I am close to a hundred posts on my blog. By now, I have made it pretty evident that when it comes to photography, I have hands of steel. So, rather than torturing you with my lens work, I bring to you my friend Siddhartha Kumar. A pilot by profession (and a Captain at that!) and photographer by obsession, Sid has won many national contests and we have been lunching on his prize moneys since we were in college. Now that the sweet part is…Continue Reading “Kabootarbazi In Purani Dilli & Launching Captain’s Clicks”
Before taking up the marketing responsibilities for a dot com company, I used to be a professional writer. Writing corporate film scripts, radio spots, jingles, print ads, brochures and whatever else that an ad agency can be hired to do. Even before that I worked as an editor with a publishing company. So, I have been holding a pen in my hand for a long time, for one reason or another. I used to tell all new recruits that becoming a professional writer should never…Continue Reading “Great shoot, no one hurt”
For the first time, I will repeat title in the first line of the blog post – did you know there is a CNG crematorium in Delhi? First of all, who needs a compressed natural gas oven? We already have wood fired and electric ones! Secondly, I drive a compressed natural gas fueled car, many of which have burst and burnt on Delhi roads. So, I am not smiling! Thirdly, where is it? It’s at Nigambodh Ghat, they have all the three options there. It’s…Continue Reading “A CNG crematorium in Delhi”
Blaming others for what you have become is a sign of a much deeper malaise. Cribbers and whiners have never done anyone any good, so why read about another one? You won’t have any sympathy for a serial killer who blames his father for keeping him tied to a bed post when he was young. Why listen to the mad ramblings of a guy who claims the very air of Delhi makes him sick then? I had a brilliant sociology professor in college who would…Continue Reading “All Delhi Men Are Rapists. It’s Not Their Fault.”
As it happens, every most travelers crib endlessly about food at airports and on airplanes. There is an unsaid agreement among food bloggers and travelers to show put all this flying food back in its place. But I have found it very hard to say bad things about food, any food. My taste buds have no self-respect and my mouth has always been a one way street. I am a foodie, the kind who are great consumers of food, not great connoisseurs. That’s why, I…Continue Reading “Do I have to trash Delhi airport food?”
If you are not the needlessly litigating types, you will agree that Mirza Ghalib is the most popular Urdu poet of this and the last century. I don’t wish to be irreverent to other esteemed poets or create a popularity chart, but Ghalib inspires poetry in the sub-continent like no other. He has been quoted in Bollywood movies, song by all classical and Ghazal singers of any reputation in both India and Pakistan, and is heavily quoted by every budding lover. Given that his popularity…Continue Reading “Mirza Ghalib Memorial in Old Delhi”
Last weekend, I had the good, and completely undeserved fortune, of being invited to a dinner with dignitaries from the art world. At the table were professors from German universities and directors of museums from many different countries. The dinner was hosted at the Lodhi Garden Restaurant, which though set in a beautiful setting, was not half as remarkable in terms of food. Now, that I have started talking about the restaurant, I will get this matter of least consequence out of the way first….Continue Reading “Blogging as artwork and other debates at the Lodhi Garden Restaurant”
I am talking to you Delhi, the glorious capital city of India. You are also a State and take no less pride in that. You are center of power and the seat of the whole apparatus of two governments. Your rightful arrogance comes from the richness of heritage and architecture that you are endowed with: numerous historic forts, the Parliament building, India Gate, Old Delhi, the posh Panchsheel, Diplomatic Enclave, Lodhi Garden, the Red Fort and the Connaught Place. I can go on and on…Continue Reading “Commonwealth Games were not Delhi’s shame. This surely is.”
When in Rome, if everyone behaved like the Romans, Rome will end up being a pretty boring place. Same with Lajpat Nagar in Delhi. We all love Punjabi food (don’t we?) and can’t thank God enough for the fact that every block in Lajpat Nagar has a restaurant that serves exactly the same food at slightly different prices. But even my adorable neighbours can’t deny that a little change in palate is not such a bad thing. In fact, if it is the Colony Bistro,…Continue Reading “The Colony Bistro – How social media is changing the dining scene in Delhi”
I am an art idiot and I have never been ashamed of it. I always thought of art as a blank cheque that God gave only to a few. I was angry that I have been slighted and continued to boycott it. I could never see anything in paintings that went for unbelievable amounts of money, Oil, acrylic, pastel or modernist, abstract and naturalistic – they were just one guy’s work. How much worth can there be? To be honest, my resentment is unfounded. Quite…Continue Reading “Kiran Nadar Museum of Art – Please go there, you are not that busy!”
This is a sure shot way of getting some cake on my face. People in Delhi are passionate about their cakes and bakes and I don’t want to get on their wrong side. But I know I am rooting for a winner here. Wenger’s is one of the first bakeries in town, founded in 1926 as it was. Even if you have no respect for age, walk into their only store in Connaught Place and see the love for yourself. You will spend a long…Continue Reading “Wenger’s – The best bakery in Delhi?”