Once upon a time, there was a Delhi, where the central business district was Chandni Chowk and life revolved around an area near the Red Fort. This was a Delhi where the most talked-about events were poetry recitals in Urdu and Persian. Pigeon-flying and catching competitions were a popular form of entertainment and this pastime was enjoyed by several generations of families living in antiquated havelis.
Ahmed Ali's 'Twilight in Delhi' is a window into this Delhi, the 7th city of Delhi, before it stopped being the centre of gravity. The novel leads us through those times when the Durbar was held for the coronation of King George V and New Delhi was made the capital of British India. Beautifully and lovingly written and full of poetry, we get a glimpse into the lives of the inhabitants of the old city, in the lead-up to the independence movement, which started gathering steam after the First World War.
When I visited the Coronation Park
last year, I had no idea, how big the whole coronation ceremony was and what it meant to Delhi.
Here is what the author says: "Many days before the coronation people began to pour into Delhi from all parts of India and beyond. The roads were washed; oil was sprinkled to keep the dust down; and the city looked spick and span. Motor cars which had hardly ever been seen before, came into Delhi and raced on the roads; and horses passed through the Chandni Chowk and the Chaori Bazar, and strange faces were visible all around.
Most fantastic and colourful dresses rustled in the streets of Delhi from long robes to short coats, and gowns to waistcoats, and head gears of a hundred kinds. In and out of this holiday crowd, walked the Tommies in their drab uniforms, Englishmen in their plain clothes."
English pageantry aside, the book is actually about a traditional Syed family that lives in a haveli in the old city and showcases the social life and functions of the day. There is a brilliant depiction of a high class Muslim wedding, which I think is the highlight of the book.
Many traditional families were forced to flee to what became Pakistan in 1947 and a lot of the Old Delhi was completely lost. Post-1947, Delhi was effectively Punjabised and the whole aura of the area changed. I am sure there are still traces of the Delhi that the author writes about. I just need to find someone who is either an expert on the old city or lives there.
There were reports in the media that the great poet Ghalib's haveli would be transformed into a museum. Maybe such an action will throw a fresh impetus into maintaining the old city and restoring some of the grandeur of a bygone era. This book is a must-read for anyone who loves Delhi.
It wouldn't be fair for me to not mention that the author, who was a patriotic Indian, without a hint of any communal feeling, was in China at the time of India's independence and was not allowed by India's ambassador to China, K.P.S. Menon to return to the land of his birth. Ahmed Ali was told that he was a Muslim and that he should go to Pakistan. So, this great author, who wrote a book championing the cause of India's freedom, lived in a life-long exile in Karachi, and never visited his beloved Delhi again. It's a shame that this great writer was not allowed to return to India, considering the fact that Pandit Nehru gave asylum to so many Pakistani Muslim writers and musicians, who then came to India and lived happily in a country, which at that time guaranteed artistic and creative freedom.
