Thursday Doors

I might be on the plane coming home to UK for a short break when you read this blog. But it is still Old Delhi doors. Here’s a cracker to kick off with, from Dariba Kalan Road. I like the old red sandstone shining through the muddy lilac paint of the surround. I would have…

Jazz at One Golden Mile

Few artists from the West perform in India. Eddie Izzard was here in February, in mid March the remnants of Dire Straits played in Gurgaon, and last year Cold Play did a concert in Mumbai. When I heard that the famous American jazz guitarist, Stanley Jordan, was coming to Delhi to play at a jazz…

Shopping in Shahjahanabad

Well, you never know when you might need a few nuts, bolts, springs, shock absorbers. Not needed if you go shopping on a horse. Maybe that’s why he looks so miserable. Or perhaps he has piles and needs to ride sidesaddle? Department store on the pavement – material, clothing, shoes – but I’m not sure…

Death

It looked like they were carrying a macabre birthday present, wrapped up in brightly-coloured cloth, adorned with balloons, silver, red and green tinsel, on a flimsy bamboo frame. A man was at each corner and a dozen others were chanting. They were moving quickly but instead of turning right where the the sign said “Entry”,…

Color Your World – Royal Purple

The first picture shows boys bathed in purple light on stage, representing Holi, the Hindu festival of colours. The second picture shows the entrance to a temple in Old Delhi, Shahjahanabad, India.

Masks

Five weeks ago, I marvelled at a collection of masks on display at the India Habitat Centre. Sharmila Sen’s exhibition “Art Beyond Tradition” features ninety masks produced by local craftsmen from Bengal. Her aim is to keep alive the dying art form. The artists use papier mache, terracotta, wood and metal. Most depict characters from…

Cricket

Delhi doesn’t have a decent cricket ground. I was very disappointed as I wanted to see a test match here in India during my mission. Perhaps it was just as well, because the English team did not perform well here at the end of 2016. The Indians drubbed them 4-0. Recently, the Australians won the…

More Street Art in Delhi

About half way down Maharshi Raman Marg, I discovered a new selection of street art. The images are deteriorating, unfortunately, but still very impressive. Less words, more photographs.

Thursday Doors

Yes, more cracking doors from Shahjahanabad, the walled Old City of Delhi. This is a slim selection of doors, all tall and thin. First a lilac lovely, looking a bit worse for wear with rot setting in at the bottom. Someone has bodged a patch up, but it really needs seeing to. The bricks on…

Holi

What’s not to like about Holi? It is a festival of love. It celebrates the end of winter and the arrival of spring. Good triumphs over evil. It is the time to rekindle old friendships. It starts in the evening with a bonfire and the following day, people spray each other with coloured powder and…