How Rude!

This is one sign that the rebellion in me hates. Its a free world is it not... then why do the authorities have this urge to direct the movement of the citizens or visitors. Hmmmmm...

The real reason I clicked the photo at India Gate is because I thought the little rhinoceros was cute... :-)

Compliment Me!

I admit it today! Hair is very important to me. Or it may seem as this is the second hair related post in the last 15 days :-). But I just could not resist. This is the back of my head. After supporting a short crop of hair for several years, my hair is back to being shoulder length and I pestered my mom to make a French Plait. I am hoping to receive a lot of compliments for this one. :-) Hehehehe

Photo by my colleague: Mili Sharma

Road At Night

I clicked this photo while returning from Jaipur, where I had gone for the weekend. From the window of the Volvo bus, the roads of Delhi seemed to be sparkling jewels. I like this particular photo because of the movement of the lights.

Answer!

I was hoping that one of the Delhiites could identify the place. But I guess they did not visit the blog yesterday. I really wish that the three guess were right and I was fortunate enough to have studied in a university like the building above. Nice attempt Magic Eye, That is the chicken and Hilda. But hoping that you would make a correct guess would be a tall order... since you are not from Delhi.

I will open the suspense. This is the India Habitat Centre (IHC). Its an office cum cultural complex and is special as it is powered by solar electricity. Hope you visit IHC, when you come to Delhi.

Any Guesses?

Can any of you guess what place is this? Answers tomorrow. :-)

# 2: Livelihood: Sketch Artist

I met Saroj at India Gate and loved her work. She charges Rs 150 to make a pencil sketch of a person. It takes her just 15 minutes to transfer a person's face on paper. I asked her if lot of people came to get their sketches done. She replied that work is a unpredictable as life itself.

# 1: Livelihood --- Gajrawala

I went to my favourite place in Delhi --- India Gate yesterday. Met a few people and found out that the place is more than just a monument, a tourist haven, structure of national importance, important symbol of history etc... it is also a centre point of livelihood for many.

The man, photographed above, is Jitendra. During the day he offers to click photographs of tourists and as the sun goes down sells 'gajras'(small garlands of mogra that women tie on their plats). Spotting several other photographers there I asked him why does he sell gajaras rather than clicking photos at night too (since it would ensure relatively better income). He replied that he doesn't have enough money to buy a flash. So he sells 4 gajaras for Rs 10 to save money and buy a flash soon.

Its a hard life, but he does not compromise on his style statement and he told me with a huge grin, "I got my ear pierced recently."

Concrete Jungle

This is an ideal example of what a concrete jungle should be like. One of my favourite places in Delhi, the India Habitat Centre (IHC) houses these tall trees within its complex. The roof made of solar cells panels (in blue), the red bricked buildings and the green trees make for a very serene yet colourful spot to enjoy any part of the day.

Daily Scene - Subzi Mandi

This is the daily scene at the Subzi Mandi or vegetable market near my home. Every evening, the vegetable sellers set shop at the footpath and people, coming back from work, throng the little market to buy fresh vegetables of their choice.

I loathe narcissism, but I approve of vanity.

This is my mom after a session in the beauty parlour. I liked her curled look and thought of sharing the back of her head with all of you.

Picture Perfect

A dramatic sky is always a treat for the eye and the camera. I loved the way the sun was looking just minutes before setting yesterday. It was a task to stop the car bang in the middle of the flyover and click the photograph amidst loud honking from the passengers behind me. But all the bad stares, the looks and the loud obnoxious horns... were all worth it.

Fallen Art, IHC

I loved this sculpture, carved out of a tree trunk at the India Habitat Centre (IHC). But was sad to see it fallen on the ground, waiting to be carried out. Till the time it lived there... it was well loved and appreciated.

Some more photos to bid one of my favourite sculpture a goodbye.

This Too Is Art

Its difficult to refrain from passing judgment, when something as un-attractive as this is passed on as ART. I truly believe that art need not always be beautiful, a scene of murder with blood and evil all around can also be art... But this... this was disappointing. Luckily not all the installations at India Habitat Centre are this bad. In fact some are outright awe-inspiring. Will post more in the days to come.

A Little Paris In India

Many Indian carry a lot of ethnic Indian stuff when they settle abroad. This is a trend I have noticed a lot. They also carry a lot of artifacts, typically Indian, for their non-Indian friends. I was pleasantly surprised to see a piece of Paris in a Delhi home. The family, who had visited the city of romance brought the Eiffel Tower to their home in form of this sketch. I liked it.

Aayatein

These are verses, called Aayatein, from Quran engraved on the Qutub Minar. Such inscriptions are a common factor across the Mughal monuments. What these writings, in Arabic, mean, I have no idea but as an aesthetic attribute to the Mughal buildings they add a lot of beauty.

City Hospital

This is the City Hospital! Believe it or not we have a hospital which is named 'City Hospital'. I always thought that only Ekta Kapoor could come up with something as basic as this... but then as Ghalib had said "Ek dhoondho hazaar milte hain". I was rolling on the floor laughing at this one. I know the joke would fail on most of you but some ardent fans of Ekta Kapoor serials would know what I am alking about.

Let Your Imagination Run Wild

As children, cloud-watching was one of the most entertaining pass time. A bunch of friends would sit for hours weaving stories from the characters we thought we saw in the clouds. What do you think these clouds are?

Life in the Rear View Mirror

Need I say more.

Magnanimity

It is no secret that I like children and flowers. But children as young as these selling flowers on the traffic signals is not what I want to see. I would rather have these children studying, playing and singing.

I met these two the other day as I was fiddling with the camera on my phone. The boy was urging me to buy the roses but I refused as encouraging them seems a bad idea in the long run. The boy asked me if I could click his photograph. Ever ready to oblige I clicked the photo. When I showed both of them their photo you should have seen them smile. I pulled and then patted his cheeks.

After this the boy plucked a flower from his bunch and gave it to me saying, "Didi, yeh aap rakh lo. Free mein." (Elder Sister, you can keep this one for free.) I was left speechless and before I could thank him for his magnanimity, he was back to work - trying to convince other drivers to buy his flowers.

Every Cloud Has A Silver Lining

I don't know about every cloud but this one sure has one. This is how the Delhi sky looked yesterday. Today is a different matter altogether with the Sun shining brightly upon us once again. :-)

OB VAN

This is an Outside Broadcasting (OB) van. With General Elections just a month away, OB vans of several news channels can be spotted outside the headquarters of political parties, which are located in the central part of the city. This one I spotted outside the office of Communist Party of India (Marxist). Although there are several merits of a multi-party democracy, I think it confuses the ideologies of the voters since the politicians follow no specific ideology rather run behind just one goal --- FORMING THE CENTRAL GOVERNMENT... Any thoughts?

Colorful Salad

A plate full of tasty tomatoes, radishes, carrots, beetroots and cucumbers. A generous sprinkling of chopped coriander leavers and a few green chillies. A wonderful, healthy, filling salad is ready to beat the Delhi summer.

Iced Tea

The scorching summer, which I have been dreading for long now, has finally obliged Delhi. The temperatures are already soaring as high as 35 degree Celsius. One of the best ways to keep ones cool is by drinking loads of cool drinks. Not one with a taste for aerated drinks, I prefer a chilled glass of lemon flavoured Iced Tea. Hope you feel refreshed with the post. Happy Summer!

Eyes, Eyes Baby!!!

I thought this was a pragmatic advice. What do you say?

Pink!

A pink lamp. If you think its too girly... I'll agree with you. I think the reason I clicked this photo, despite my friends jeering at me, is because i like pink and girly stuff. Its always nice to see a little touch of feminity here and there, I believe. This lamp takes its place proudly in the Cafe Coffee Day (CCD) outlet at Janpath.

Theme Day: Yellow: Raj Shahi Alphonso Shake

What better way to start a month than with a delicious cool drink! If it has 3 of my favourite things, the experience becomes even more heavenly. This is a shake called 'Raj Shahi Alphonso Shake'. It has pulp of Alphonso mangoes, ice cream and red color sherbet concentrate. After thinking about today's theme day photo for the last 15 odd days. I was sure that this is the photo I would like to post as summer beckons.

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