Dilli 2009

The year is ending. As usual, we Delhiites have much to crib about. But there was also much that made us happy. Here are our Wahs and Blahs for the Capital.

The year is ending. As usual, we Delhiites have much to crib about. But there was also much that made us happy. Here are our Wahs and Blahs for the Capital.

HT Image

2009 WAH!

Ghalib’s makeover
THE tomb of Urdu poet Mirza Ghalib, in Nizamuddin Basti, is being restored. The courtyard has been paved with red sandstone, white marble inlays and ornamental patterns. There will be benches, trees and sweet-smelling shrubs favoured by the Mughals. Ghalib will finally lie in a resting place worthy of his iconic status.

It’s legal now
within a week of Delhi’s 2nd gay pride march in July, Delhi High Court legalised gay sex among consenting adults. “I’m standing in the High Court and everyone around me is just sobbing," said a tearful Rituparna Borah, a 28-year-old lesbian who is not ‘out’ at her office now. “Finally, the dream has come true,” she said.

Obama-esque dreams
AFTER Barack Obama took oath as America’s first black president in January, the young people of the city’s Dalit Colony shared their dreams with HT City. One boy, Arun Kumar, whose father is a sweeper, said: “I wait for such a moment in my country when being a Dalit or not won’t make a difference to my life.”

World class airport
THE domestic departure terminal at the IGI airport, 1D, opened in April. It has eight check-in gates, 14 pay phones, 14 boarding gates, 14 eateries, 16 retail outlets, 28 security channels, 72 airline counters, 2,000 made-in-Austria chairs and an area spanning 35,000-square metres. So what if the roof leaked during the monsoon.

CP facelift
In May, the New Delhi Municipal Council started restoring the façade of the Connaught Place. Windows are being replaced, walls re-painted, pillars and jaalis restored to their original look. There are inconviniences, but few are cribbing. One CP regular said: “A little discomfort for a better look tomorrow is OK for me.”

Pink-giri
Protesting against moral policing that resulted in the beating of girls in a Mangalore pub, a Delhi-based girl started the Pink Chaddi Campaign. Pink underwears were sent to the outfit that was behind the Managlore incident. On Valentine’s Day, people gathered at Jantar Mantar to declare, “Mangalore, Never Again.”

DU’s iGen
This is the new generation of Delhi University students with no dress codes, no gawkiness, no ideologies. They all might not own iPods, but look like they do. They might be religious, but have no problems with other faiths. They don’t feel the need to impress outsiders but are impressive nonetheless. Three cheers to them.

2009 BLAH

Admission pains
It takes a lot to get into Delhi University (DU). While standing in an admission queue in the North Campus, DU aspirant Antara Raghavan wrote, “I’m in an unmoving queue, it’s nearly 40 degrees outside and I have an uneasy, if illogical, feeling that I’ve filled out the application form wrong.”

Jantar Mantar’s shame
On November 19, the first day of the World Heritage Week, thousands of protesting farmers from Uttar Pradesh gatecrashed into the Jantar Mantar complex. They urinated against the walls, broke the southern gate, and lit fire to dry grass. (A fire brigade had to be called.) Many also had booze.

Amita Malik’s library
ONE of Delhi’s most most venerable jorunalists, Amita Malik died in April, aged 87. Within weeks HT City spotted many of her books lying in Daryaganj’s book bazaar pavement. “It’s sad,” said theatre person Sunit Tandon who knew her. “She was very possessive for her books.”

Auto-cracy
The auto-walla bhaiyyas treat us like a chicken about to be slaughtered. They ignore our frantically waving arms. If they stop, they shake their heads when we name our completely reasonable destination, and drive off. And if they agree, they refuse to go by the meter.