The city of Shahjahanabad, now old Delhi, was fortified by walls running all around, with 14 heavily guarded gates to allow passage of people and goods. Some of these gates remain, and are addresses and landmarks in themselves. How about a journey in time through them? AJMERI GATE Located a few minutes from the New Delhi Railway Station, this was [...]
He was never trained for it academically, but the fifth Mughal emperor Shahjahan has no rivals to the title of the ‘Greatest Architect Ever’ in India. Who can match a portfolio comprising the Taj Mahal, the Red Fort and the Jama Masjid besides many others wonders he built? This post has been taken from Delhi 101, a book written by Ajay [...]
The Fatehpuri Masjid (Mosque) stands at the western end of Chandni Chowk, and is the most important mosque of old Delhi after the Jama Masjid. It is also very different from every other mosque.
This may seem complicated but bear with it. Jalaluddin Muhammad Akbar was forced to come to the throne as a young boy when his father emperor Humayun met with an untimely death. Amongst the many confidants who effectively ran the kingdom for the boy king was his tutor Bairam Khan, whose influence was enhanced by marrying Humayun’s sister-in-law. As Akbar [...]
It is one of the best preserved and finest mosques in Delhi, but lies largely ignored except by the devout who come here to offer prayers. Or by young boys who like to play cops and robbers amongst its ruins (at least the author did, while he was staying in Kaka Nagar in the late 1970s / early 1980s across [...]
The fifth Mughal emperor Shahjahan may be a hero to every romantic for building the Taj Mahal in the memory of his wife Mumtaz Mahal, but did you know the inspiration came from his great grandmother Hamida Banu Begum?
Three different rulers (one mythological, two real) zeroed in on the site of the present day Purana Qila (Old Fort) as their seat of power – and somehow none survived long enough to really enjoy the fruits of their labour. This post has been taken from Delhi 101, a book written by Ajay Jain. It is about 101 surprising ways to [...]
Cows are no longer allowed to graze in Lodi Gardens but it was their domain until 1936. Lady Willingdon, wife of the then British Viceroy to India, wanted her own Regent’s Park to walk in. And the village of Khairpur was thus moved (no one knows where to) to make way for the 90 acre gardens. And christened, what else, [...]
The following act starred Firoz Shah Tughlaq (1351 – 1388) who set up a Madrasa (an educational institution) called Madrasa-e-Feroz Shahi – and established Delhi as a great seat of learning. And the present day authorities deserve a pat on the back for landscaping the area to make for fun outings. This post has been taken from Delhi 101, a book [...]
No single archway in India has so much blood on its hands as the Khooni Darwaza (literally meaning the Bloody Gate). It is actually not a gate, but just an arch outside the Firoz Shah Kotla, and built by the Lion King Sher Shah Suri (1540-45), founder of the Suri dynasty. This post has been taken from Delhi 101, a book [...]
Firoz Shah was the first ruler of Delhi who stayed away from sounding battle cries at the slightest provocation, choosing to focus on public good instead. Especially after the residents of Delhi were still recovering from his eccentric predecessor and cousin Mohammed bin Tughlaq’s crazy act of making the residents move to Daulatabad in the Deccan only to ask them [...]
If you are willing to overlook the surroundings, a visit to the Begumpur village is an eye-opener. The greatest surprise waiting is the mosque – one of the biggest in Delhi. The courtyard is 247 feet long and 223 feet wide, and the perimeter walls are lined with 64 domes or cupolas on the top. Must have taken quite an [...]
The Jahanpanah Forest is one of Delhi’s best kept secrets, known mostly to those in its neigbourhood. Step inside and don’t be surprised to be greeted by a fox scurrying away – the probability is very low though. Its circumference is marked by a 6.6 kms (4.1 miles) black tar track – runners can measure their progress with milestones every [...]
The mosque and tomb of Sufi saint and mystic Hazrat Nizamuddin Auliya is the most auspicious spot for the devout after Jama Masjid in Old Delhi. But it is welcoming of people from all faiths – a visit is strongly recommended. Nizamuddin, born in A.D. 1236 in Badaun in the north Indian state of Uttar Pradesh, came to Delhi as [...]
If you were a thief during the reign of Alauddin Khilji (A.D. 1296-1316), good luck to you! Things would be fine as long as one was not caught and convicted. If you were, chances are you would be sent off to the Chor Minar (Tower of Thieves) and hanged. If that was not bad enough, you would be then beheaded [...]
Only two women have ‘ruled’ India from Delhi. The first was Razia Sultan who ruled from A.D. 1236 – 1240 as the chosen heir to her father Shamsuddin Illtutmish; she was preferred over her brothers. And the other was democratically elected Indira Gandhi, the prime minister for multiple terms between the 1960s and the 1980s.
This is a classic case of operation successful, patient dead. The Tughlaqabad Fort, the citadel of the 3rd city of Delhi, is the most imposing of all in the city – and yet it fell upon bad times even before it saw any better.
The Sultan Garhi tomb is known to be the oldest surviving resting place for anyone in Delhi. The basement with three graves is usually dark and damp, and you have to watch your step, and head, when you go in. Little stirs inside except on Thursdays.
The wonders around Qutab Minar (itself a wonder) never cease. Take the case of the Iron Pillar located in the Quwwat-ul-Islam Mosque compound.
Pisa in Italy has its Leaning Tower, Paris its Eiffel Tower and Delhi its Qutab Minar – the branding of these cities are all linked to their most famous landmarks. But none have as much history and intrigue as Delhi’s minaret.
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