THE ONCE AND FUTURE CITY

DELHI HAS HAD MANY AVATARS THROUGH THE AGES. TRUE-BLUE DILLIWALA AMAN NATH REMINISCES ABOUT THE DELHI HE KNOWS BEST

- AMAN NATH

Delhi is as much a buried city as one that wilfully layers itself anew. Being the capital of the only continuously alive civilisation in the world, it owes this resurgence to itself, and to India. To me—who was born in New Delhi in 1950—it is energising to live in a city which is forever mercurial, effervescent and adolescent.

When the British announced the shift of the seat of their ‘jewel in the crown’ from Calcutta to Delhi, they were back on that dahel—the threshold—which had symbolised a point of entry for the Turks, Afghans, Mongols, etc, and they consciously saw their Dilli transformed to New Delhi. Dictums like ‘All roads lead to Rome’ moved from the English tongues to our lips. That was the classical, ancient civilisational seed of Britannica. So, like Rome, New Delhi also got to have its proverbial seven cities. But when I grew up studying history and counted, the buried layers led to the figure of 12: 1. Indraprastha, 2. Dilli, 3. lal Kot, 4. Qila Rai Pithora, 5. Kilughari, 6. Siri, 7. Tughlaqabad, 8. Jahanpanah, 9. Ferozabad, 10. Din Panah, 11. Sher Garh, 12. Shahjahanabad. New Delhi was the 13th and it became the grandest architectural commission since Rome.

I was born in 9/56 Western extension Area in a twin house by Pusa Road, where a post-1947 refugee colony was created to house some of the 14.5 million displaced and dispossessed from west Punjab. And I was privileged to be born with a twin brother—unidentical; so we could both grow our own personalities.