Delhiwale: A tale of two cities

Delhi residents hold a deep affection for Nainital, reminiscing about its heritage despite recent losses, like the fire that destroyed Old London House.

Sometimes, citizens live in one city but are intensely affectionate towards another. Such is the bond between Delhi and Nainital. For a few Delhiwale, especially of earlier generations, that British-built hill station commandeers a strong pull in their daily life. Step into Khan Market’s Faqir Chand bookstore, where merely uttering the word “Nainital” is sufficient to induce the bookseller, the cordial Anup Bamhi, to chat non-stop about the place—his schooldays there in St Joseph’s College, his walks to the Bandstand… if you are willing, he might also list all the Delhiwale who, like him, were the products of Nainital’s prestigious boarding schools.

K.D. Singh himself would sit behind the bookstore’s counter (seen in the photo with wife Nini), which he referred to as his “Boat Club” (HT)

Last week, Nainital suffered a grievous loss to its heritage. One of its earlier surviving buildings—Old London House dating to 1853– was destroyed in a fire. The material loss cannot, however, sever the sentimental connect between Nainital and some distinguished Delhiwale. One Delhi family owns Gurney House, which was once the Nainital residence of the legendary Jim Corbett.

While present-day Nainital is as compromised as any north Indian hill station (over-tourism, etc), the Nainital that some Delhiwale cherish is preserved in their memories of the old days. Indeed, during the 1960s, the hill station was the summer adda of Delhi’s rich. In May and June, the capital’s high society would shift to Nainital. The old-money families had their own cottages, or their favoured hotels, sometimes, even favourite rooms. Gurugram-based Zeenat Kausar, whose illustrious Purani Dilli family owned the legendary Shama magazine, always stayed at the Grand Hotel. Every day, she would do “boating” in the lake, KL Saigal songs playing from a gramophone.

Delhi’s most passionate Nainital lover was the founder-owner of Jorbagh’s Book Shop. KD Singh, who had studied at the hill station in the 1950s, had recreated his own Nainital in his small bookstore. Only friends with a “Nainital connection” were intimates to the secret geography. The new releases were displayed behind the glass display in “Tallital”, which happens to be the entry point to the real Nainital. Older books were exiled to “Mallital”, the area beyond the popular Mall Road. Classics were stacked up on the high-altitude “Snow View”, which is the ropeway ride’s destination. KD Singh himself would sit behind the bookstore’s counter (seen in the photo with wife Nini), which he referred to as his “Boat Club”—Nainital’s equivalent of Delhi’s members-only India International Center. The icing on the cake was the desktop image on the bookseller’s computer. It was of Nainital’s lake.

KD Singh died a decade ago; the bookstore pulled down its shutters in Jorbagh a couple of years ago, and moved to nearby Lodhi Colony Market under a slightly altered name.

That said, one long-time Nainital institution that survives is Sakley’s, loved by Nainitalwale for its pastries. But we Delhiwale don’t have to drive all the way to the distant mountains to get a taste of the landmark. It has an outlet in our own Gurugram—Sakley’s The Mountain Café.