The House Of Mirza Ghalib and Karim's

Nothing like trips to different places in the old quarters of Delhi and so we decided to explore Ballimaran this weekend. Ballimaran is a street that takes off from Chandni Chowk and runs up to Jama Masjid from where yet another street veers off, the Gali Qasim Jaan, where we can find the Haveli, or house of Mirza Ghalib. He lived here, the foremost poet during the last days of the Mughal empire and is considered to be one of the greatest poets of the Indian subcontinent  (1797 to 1869). Only two rooms and a small courtyard of the house have been acquired and converted into a museum. 

Samples of his handwriting have survived in bound books such as these and there is nothing much more except a few of his robes and chess boards and tableau with a few of his couplets 

The reason why Ghalib's poetry has attracted the young as well as the old can be seen in these couplet, put up in posters

Another end of this street has the famous Sangam kebab joint, but it opens only in the evening and stays open well past midnight. So we decided to walk down Ballimaran to Jama Masjid Gate No. 1. from where a few steps into another street is another of the must visit places in Delhi, the Karim's restaurant. Having featured in a BBC documentary, this eatery is now quite famous and the queues testify to its popularity. 

Opened in 1913 to serve royal cuisine to the common populace, it is said that the restaurant was started by descendants of the royal Mughal chefs since the secret ingredients and techniques were passed on from generation to generation. I can very well vouch for the Mutton Jehangiri for its subtle aromas and delectable taste and I don't think mutton has been cooked better in many other places 

Yeh Ishq nahin aasaan, bus yun samajh lijiye

Aag ka dariya hai aur doob ke jaana hai!

It isn't easy, this love, let it be known

Immersed in the river of fire, one must come

Hazaron Khwawishein aisi

Ki har khwawish pe dum nikle

Bahut nikle mere armaan par

Phir bhi kam nikle

Thousands of desires, such

that every one is hard to attain

So many wishes met but

So many yet remain 

(Poetry by Mirza Ghalib, translations are mine, even as I must say that the ambience of Urdu poetry can hardly be translated. For example, the word Khwawieshen  doesn't quite answer to either desires as we know it, or wishes or wants, it is something that the heart desires in its dreams!)

Street Food in Delhi

Decided to go explore the street food in old Delhi. Happened to be just the weekend when the temperature dropped with a chilly wind blowing in from the North but anyways, here we were, exploring Chawri Bazar at noon, walking along narrow and crowded streets full of old buildings dating from the middle of the 19th century. Only a few of these have been maintained properly but there are lots more such as these elaborately carved gateways and canopied balconies on brackets suggest, the brackets definitely drawing inspiration from the 17th century fusion architecture visible in Fatehpur Sikri, especially the Ibadat Khana of Emperor Akbar

First stop, Hiralal's Chat, for a leaf plate of slow fried potato patty embellished with a variety of sauces, syrups and spices. Also available in scooped out potatoes and tomatoes as a filling!

And then, for another plate of fruit chat, mixed fruit slices served with a liberal dunking in spices. One can ask for the degree of hotness one would like to have of course, and we preferred the lighter version.

Omkar is from Rampur in the State of Uttar Pradesh. He was almost invisible, squatting on the roadside with his pot of boiled gram, boiled to perfection and served with a mixture of chopped herbs and green chutney

Finally, "Daulat Ki Chat" which is uniquely available only during the cold season and only in these places. Made by whipping milk with cream at night, there is an interesting resource about Daulat Ki Chat here

This tastes like milk foam, and just disappears in the mouth. And after all this stuff, we had to skip lunch!