How to Fall in Love With Delhi

“Oh this is such a pretty tree!” she ran pointing towards it, her finger leading our eyes to a labyrinth of twisted branches and dancing leaves. The sun was shining, but I hadn’t realised it until that moment, when my eyes met with a sliver of light bursting through the canopy under which my friend stood brimming with elation. Maybe these moments are what cameras were invented for.

Breaks are for breathing. Home is for missing. Friends are for laughing with and wide roads of wherever you are for pacing up and down until the wide expanse of this universe hits you in the face like a breath of fresh air. In my city, the breath comes with a tinge of smoke and envy, sure. But in my city also comes ample opportunity to appreciate small pockets of cool breeze—where silence pervades and deep, quiet, steady breathing sits heavily on the pavements bordering the grey concrete. These are the residential areas of Delhi, where time guiltily stands still in the hours of siesta.

Yes, such metropolitans are infamous for their fast-paced lifestyle. Everyone is looking for places to visit near Delhi or quick getaways near Mumbai. But if you ever find the time to walk through the colonies of broad-walled bungalows that populate their umpteen lanes, you’ll discover a secretive side of the city that no one likes to admit to. And that’s the charm. Most people here don’t even realise they’re breathing silence some times.

I took the Sunday to walk under the sun through these less trodden streets with my friends. My insides were bubbling with an energy I hadn’t felt for a long time. It was the sizzle of Indian spices burning in my blood, mixing with the cool softness of Daulat ki Chaat (is a walk through Delhi ever complete without it?) permeating my cheeks like a rosiness ready to love the world outside me. Time for once was not slipping through the palms of my hands, but was my companion in quiet. I was content, which is probably why everything that came after seemed like a cherry to savour with my tongue clicking against tightly pursed lips.

Between our 9-5’s (read 7-9’s) and teaching schedules (read training, sweating, learning and time managing), we found a day to meander our busy courses back to each other’s genial embrace. Three extremely different vibrations had met at the roundabout in the middle of the city: what would transpire could only be electric. I was dazed for many a moment: I get like that sometimes. But in fleeting conversations I caught the sound of giggles, the warmth of a familiar touch and questions of care, concern and support. “Why did you post your piece yesterday, and not today?” I never knew people noticed when I post. Friends, I tell you.

Taking a left from the roundabout, we headed into a colony that shall remain unnamed, and the colour green began to take over our vision. Voices became rested, the pace slowed, and now there was not a care in the world. It took me back to the street of my own house, where certain sacred hours of the day find even the leaves falling asleep. Men and women are away at work while some snooze after filling the street with aromas of idli-sambhar and whatnot. Oh, the things that are revealed through an open window. After lunch descends into the usual afternoon torpor, the dogs find their spot in the sun and the kids get their bikes out; the rogue teenager who dares to explore the solace of the street is stunned by the hustle of trainings wheels blazing past in a flurry. That’s my colony. And many more across Delhi.

This particular afternoon will go down in my memory as one of the happiest. This particular afternoon reintroduced me to love. Love that dribbles like sap off the trees, love that fills up your eyes with its intangibility, love that keeps evolving until you experience every single thing around you in a new way. It’s almost like shedding an old skin—you begin to feel softer, fresher, more alive.

My mind’s eye has captured this moment forever, and I cannot, will not undo it. She is standing across the road, I am touched by surprise at my oversight of the beautiful piece of green in an otherwise cemented city, and in this moment, the world is quiet and wants for nothing.

And all of this, was in Delhi.