New outdoors

Thu, May 22 01:15 AM

Ask DU students about popular hangout zones in the campus, and Kamla Nagar comes the reply. But those with a streak of adventure are now going beyond the campus, even beyond the usual hotspots like CP, Khan Market and Rajouri Garden malls.

Students have now discovered the bazaars of Paharganj and Chandni Chowk. Paharganj, the backpackers' paradise, lures the student community with its rooftop cafes offering authentic Italian, Korean, Continental, Israeli, Sri Lankan and even Nepali cuisine - at dhaba rates.

Pahagranj's Main Bazaar is like a hip man's Dilli Haat. If the original Dilli Haat (which anyway is too far) offers Bandhej kurtas, Jaipuri jootis and Madhubani paintings, then this Dilli Haat stocks psychedelic tee-shirts, patchwork pajamas and hippie rings.

Funky! Samarth Bhardwaj, a student at KMC, says, "Sam's Caf and #233; and German Bakery are the best places there. Cheap booze too is easily available.

" The university's foreign students feel a bit homely here. Parikshhit, a Nepalese student in Hindu College, says, "Salesmen of almost every Paharganj shop take pride in their knowledge of what they believe is 'Global Understanding'.

" The minority who find pleasure in exotic books are regulars to second-hand bookshops (where foreign tourists dispose off books not otherwise found in town). "I have picked some very odd titles from Paharganj shops," says Sohini, a 3rd year student at Hindu College.

It takes a short ride from Paharganj to Chandni Chowk but what a different world - very desi but also very bindaas. If students go gaga over Paharganj's pancakes and rattatouies, nothing stops them from drooling over jalebis, faluda kulfis, aloo-puri and dhai bhallas.

Food is not the only appeal though. Female folk always manage a detour to the silver market at Dariba Kalan to get their jhumkas, payals, and kangans.

"A wide variety of ethnic designs are available here and this being a wholesale market, there is always a scope for great bargains," says Sheena Goyal, a 2nd year student in Kalindi College. Chandni Chowk also attracts wannabe photographers while the next door Jama Masjid and Red Fort draws in the history buffs.

Moreover Golcha and Delite theatres take care of your pocket. "They are as nice as multiplexes and cheaper", says Sachida, a Hindu student.

The experience of being in places like Paharganj and Chandni Chowk is as action-packed as.

say, Saket, and yet, relatively inexpensive.

What more can students ask for?.

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