The hang over of the Delhi trip is not getting over. I am not able to concentrate in my studies. Writing about the memories would give a relief, i think. We were a bunch of people who were traveling in different directions. Once the tour was planned, an extreme sense of desire to blend together propped up. A feeling which we never gone through in the three years of college life.
Delhi was not new to me. I lived there, worked for 5 months in a school. I experienced its air to the maximum. but Dilli is something which we could never explore completely. Delhi has different flavours. I decided to go back to taste the unknown…
Everyone was highly skeptical about the trip because of the ‘unity’ in our class. Still the journey in the train to some extent helped to create a feeling of togetherness. We landed at the Agra Fort. The past glory of the Mughal Agra is not evident in the streets of Mayawati’s Agra. But Fatehpur Sikri’s aura took me to the age of Mughals.. When we were about to retrieve, a musician Ustad Majid Qureshi started offering his prayers infront of the dargah of the great Sufi Salim Sheikh Chisti with his magical voice. That was the place, where once Tansen sang for Akbar. The stories of Mughal rulers always had an influence on me. The blend of power, luxury, culture, hatred, heritage, lineage and music lingers in that stories. I felt that vibes in Sikri. A strange feeling of satisfaction was there in everyone’s faces.
Taj Mahal was a dream come truefor me like everyone. Finally i witnessed the pain and love for Mumtaz Mahal. I have a feeling that the beauty of Taj Mahal comes from the pain of mumtaz.
“Krisha Janmabhoomi” or Mathura Temple was our next destination. It looked like the tomb of Yadava lineage. The tight security for “Lord” Krishna, the artificial Vrindavan, traces of mosque(minarets), dirty and dusty streets, handicapped Gokkals(Cows) suffocated my thoughts.
Delhi looked more beautiful after the Commonwealth Games, even though Kalmadi is in Tihar. The dilapidated structures adjacent to Qutub Minar, the silence inside the Bahaai Temple, the centrally air conditioned akshardham temple, the laal qila was the highlights of the day. But the walk to Jama Masjid was something disturbing…. (continues)
