Some of my own questions got answered here - like why were you staying in Chandni Chowk - a place I have never been myself despite living 40+ years in New Delhi :)
All said and done, chandni chowk and Old Delhi as a whole was called an unequaled paradise once.
It was the Mughal Emperor Shah Jahan who said of (Old now) Delhi:
If there is heaven on earth
It is this, it is this, it is this!
I have no idea when and how the decline began. I have read books by British residents as well praising the beauty of the place during the British rule. As far as I remember their descriptions, it was not so crowded, full of greenery, cultured locals but famous for bazaars even then.
Thank you for your comment--we're always interested to hear what you have to say.
I'm not sure if the word "decline" applies here, since the Chowk is packing far more activity than it was designed for. The wholesale spice market alone acts as an interchange for all of northern India, which is a huge trade. And that's just one tiny island. The area's businesses support an enormous number of people, directly and indirectly.
However... We would love to have seen the original installation of Shah Jehan's daughter. She worked with genuine artists to build the moon-reflecting pool and all the other beautiful structures that have long since been swallowed.
One thought that occurs to us when we're here: 200 years ago, the British were impressed by the crowding and size of eastern cities like CC. Yet if a modern New Yorker or Londoner went back to visit CC 200 years ago, the neighborhood would feel quite roomy. Standards change.
And... When we asked our friend Wasim if he lived in CC, he was quite emphatic that no one like him could afford it. The worker bees were all forced to live across the River where housing was more affordable. CC was for elites, at least by his standards.
Very refreshing to see that you don't consider it a "decline". But economical aspects aside, it was once a place where even British children and women lived safely and happily. In your pictures I can nowhere see the beauty and cleanliness as described and painted in the books by British authors who experienced it first hand in their childhood. I read these books in college and I can still smell the joy and warmth of their narrations and the paintings that represented the place.
Compare it to now when foreigners like you and Indian women like me are asked not to travel/stay at this place.
At the same time, I would also admit that crowded places with congested houses, electricity wires hanging low (all illegal connections) are not as bad as they seem and may be even better in terms of culture and good neighborliness. I remember passing such a street one afternoon in Delhi and pitying the unknown occupants but on my way back, it was evening and everyone in the street was out and believe it or not, each kid and woman I saw were laughing and joyfully carrying out their games and chores like one big family!
Some of my own questions got answered here - like why were you staying in Chandni Chowk - a place I have never been myself despite living 40+ years in New Delhi :)
All said and done, chandni chowk and Old Delhi as a whole was called an unequaled paradise once.
It was the Mughal Emperor Shah Jahan who said of (Old now) Delhi:
If there is heaven on earth
It is this, it is this, it is this!
I have no idea when and how the decline began. I have read books by British residents as well praising the beauty of the place during the British rule. As far as I remember their descriptions, it was not so crowded, full of greenery, cultured locals but famous for bazaars even then.
Thank you for your comment--we're always interested to hear what you have to say.
I'm not sure if the word "decline" applies here, since the Chowk is packing far more activity than it was designed for. The wholesale spice market alone acts as an interchange for all of northern India, which is a huge trade. And that's just one tiny island. The area's businesses support an enormous number of people, directly and indirectly.
However... We would love to have seen the original installation of Shah Jehan's daughter. She worked with genuine artists to build the moon-reflecting pool and all the other beautiful structures that have long since been swallowed.
One thought that occurs to us when we're here: 200 years ago, the British were impressed by the crowding and size of eastern cities like CC. Yet if a modern New Yorker or Londoner went back to visit CC 200 years ago, the neighborhood would feel quite roomy. Standards change.
And... When we asked our friend Wasim if he lived in CC, he was quite emphatic that no one like him could afford it. The worker bees were all forced to live across the River where housing was more affordable. CC was for elites, at least by his standards.
Very refreshing to see that you don't consider it a "decline". But economical aspects aside, it was once a place where even British children and women lived safely and happily. In your pictures I can nowhere see the beauty and cleanliness as described and painted in the books by British authors who experienced it first hand in their childhood. I read these books in college and I can still smell the joy and warmth of their narrations and the paintings that represented the place.
Compare it to now when foreigners like you and Indian women like me are asked not to travel/stay at this place.
At the same time, I would also admit that crowded places with congested houses, electricity wires hanging low (all illegal connections) are not as bad as they seem and may be even better in terms of culture and good neighborliness. I remember passing such a street one afternoon in Delhi and pitying the unknown occupants but on my way back, it was evening and everyone in the street was out and believe it or not, each kid and woman I saw were laughing and joyfully carrying out their games and chores like one big family!