Fractal
Delhi Pahrganj from 4th October to the 9th.
Arrival
in Delhi with some down time due to contracting bacterial infection
and jet lag.
Otherwise
enjoyed the cacophony of sounds and sights.
Mode
of transport was walking and bike. However use of rickshaw when in
need of extra power. Parganji and Old Delhi varies from being
absolutely frenetic, to a kind of smouldering intense. I tried to
capture (a few glimpses perhaps) the sense of it through footage
titled 'Fractal Delhi, one'.
However
this sense of 'the frantic pace of being in a metropolis' gave
opportunity to observe examples of how residence do adapt.
One
instance was the Lassi vendor/specialist (they only do Lassi) pour
with a sense of detached engagement. The meeting with a passer-by who
was able to portray a memorable narrative sense of the rickshaw
temple and rest stop. There was the shoe mender, that doubled as a
minstrel from Rajasthan (on video footage) that ended up singing
ballads. They capture the Hindu concept of 'dharma'(to sustain, to
uphold) that is foundational to the lived experience of the people.
Sometimes
its just not possible to get to a destination, like when I
tried to cycle to the Red Fort, only to be grid locked with people,
rickshaws, cars, cows and carts.
Although around
each corner there appears really small temples, the bird feeding platform, and my favourite, Delhi's area
devoted to book stores (great for research material, like the one on
Buddhist monasteries of Himachal). Also there is even some evidence
of street art appearing here and there.
A
significant counter point to the urban malaise are mini festivals.
The icon (Murti) as a mode of expression within space (Tirtha) that
breaks up the usual temporal flow (Kala). The depictions on offer
were part of a night celebration that began with lots of VIPs on
stage.
Parganj
is a bit of a travellers' point to embark onwards to a region. My
destination was to explore areas in the Kulu valley of Himachal
Pradesh.
the pouring of milk, movement as temporal flow
observed lived
experience.
Graze pastures, conglomerates consumers of commodity, waste not.
Rickshaw temple
A relatively secluded location set
between the urban dense zones of Paharganj and Connaught place. Here
broken bikes are mended, as well as a 'Murti' locale (embodied image)
for 'Arcana' (worship) and 'Smarana' (remembering)
Contemporary Hindu mini festivals offers the liberty to express a polemic. This is a procession
in which a 'murti' (literal meaning as 'embodiment' which designates
a divinity) is taken through town.
