"Cheap Thrills" Diaries- Dilli Haat!

The weather is perfect and the place is colourful and vivacious….just as life ought to be!! I am writing about going to Dilli Haat (INA Market) one of these days. The Dastkar festival is on and it is the perfect time of the year to check out this place. The entry is Rs.15 per adult and Rs.10 for a child below 12 years of age. Start with the mandatory round of the haat, going from stall to stall. As you enter, starting from the left side of the market, there is a stall selling art de facts made from iron which are beautiful and affordable. If buying huge wall hangings is not your cup of tea, you could make do with a small souvenirs comprising of a bunch of tribal people dancing or a single tribal man beating the drums! They look beautiful and make for good gifts as well. Moving on, one comes across the hand crafted works and paintings from Orissa and Bihar. Madhubani, and other such styles of paintings. There are stalls for Pashmina’s from Kashmir and silks from Chanderi. Everything from carpets, to pearl and silver jewellery to woodcrafts and handicrafts are available in intricate designs and styles.

The food area starts somewhere around the middle of the market and offers a decent variety to gorge into. The scheme of the food court is such that one can explore food options from different States. Though with the passage of time, what remains is a loose segregation into ‘chaat-dosa type of food’ and the ‘ Indian chinese type of food’. Not much scope for trying out too many authentic dishes. I guess that is because there were’nt too many takers for it in a largely Punjabi-vaishnavi food loving Delhi!
Hygiene and cleanliness is not exactly the high point but the place does make for a good hang out zone for those who enjoy dhaba like ambience. There are lots of stall selling momos, fruit beer, chaat, north Indian meals etc. One has to explore to find out what is good where. But I do highly recommend the spicy Rajasthani thali at the Rajsthan food stall. It is as close as one can come to getting a taste of authentic Rajsthani food. For Rs.120 you can get a taste of dal-baati, rajasthani kadhi, bajra roti, rice, choorma, halwa and more! Two people can easily share the thali by ordering an extra roti. The Rajasthani kachori is also quiet popular. Infact, I noticed that the Rajsthan food stall itself is quiet a hit as compared to the rest of the food stalls. Oh yes, do not forget to polish it off with a steaming cup of tea served in an earthen kullar adding to the rustic feel!

The place has been done up nicely with colourful décor. It is particularly nice during the day when it is cold and the sun is pleasantly shining.

Continue exploring and interact with the artists and artisans sitting at the stalls. Most of them come from their native states and it’s a good break from the seasoned sales persons of Delhi!!

Go with a big gang or enjoy it in solitude. One can never get bored at this favourite hang out of mine. It is an open air locale and is not the same during the hot Delhi summers. So go right away and enjoy!