Delhiwale: Dilli darshan, in extreme heat

Early morning in Delhi is a peaceful time, from bustling streets to serene tombs. The city awakens with chai stalls, temples, and vendors bustling with life.

In early morning Delhi, just before the summertime sun of mid-June flames brightly on the domes of tombs and forts, and on the windows and balconies of suburban high-rises, and into the foliage of avenue trees, and upon the grass and hedges of the public gardens, the sleepy city lies snuggled in relative coolness.

In early morning Delhi, just before the summertime sun of mid-June flames brightly, the sleepy city lies snuggled in relative coolness. (HT Photo)

Take early morning Hazrat Nizamuddin Basti. The quiet lanes are stirring up with the first round of chai on boil in the chai stalls. The courtyard at Ghalib’s tomb is empty, except for two homeless citizens asleep around the poet’s grave-chamber (see photo). Lying on a stone bench, one of the men is turned towards a marble slab inscribed with Ghalib’s verse:

“When nothing was, then God was there

Had nothing been, God would have been

My being has defeated me

Had I not been, what would have been.”

In early morning Hauz Khas Village, the main lane of cafes, pizzerias, restaurants and curio stores is empty. A tonga appears on the silent lane, loaded with vegetables and fruits, the harnessed mule tiktoking past the shuttered fronts, towards the village’’s exit. Close by, in a temple yard, a woman is worshipping under a tree, the massive trunk wound over with sacred red kalava threads.

In early morning Chitli Qabar Chowk, the only human present is a recycler hauling a huge sack, probably filled with street discards. A brown dog jumps up from the side-drain, and violently barks at the man, who unconcernedly walks past the locked door of Chitli Qabar sufi shrine. (The grilled window is showing the darkened grave within.)

In early morning Gwal Pahari, try to imagine the hills yet untouched by the day’s white heat. This reporter has explored the beautiful region in Gurugram during the day, but it must look even more beautiful when the summer’s hostile sun hasn’t yet raided the sky. With new towers flanking the distant background, Gwal Pahari preserves an old Aravali landscape that must have existed across Gurugram before most of it were flattened by the real estate builders. The area is still carpeted with trees. Neel Gai sightings are frequent. The roadside slopes are littered with instagrammable rocks and boulders.

Meanwhile, as the morning gives way to blazing noon, the city exteriors are likely to be emptied of citizens. The reality is different. The sun-soaked lanes continue to teem with pedestrians, including street vendors and labourers. In fact, on Eid this Monday, during the particularly scorching afternoon, the grounds around the India Gate were packed with picnickers. Summer was shown its place.