William Dalrymple's 'CITY OF DJINNS'

This has been my second read from William Dalrymple. His work is based on immense research accommodated by rigorous travelling and meeting persons in face that may aid or be part of lineage concerning historical underpinnings. Undoubtedly and yet again his work has been backed by factual data collected from tangible and intangible sources. And yet again the work is good read providing insights-this time-on a city i.e. Delhi.  

The book owes its origin from Mr. William's stay in India during his journalistic tenure. For a SCOTTISH to have nurtured in temperate climate and ending up in a tropical climate has found an interesting expression in the work, forcing you to visualize graphically. The book thus takes you in to his personal life, his interaction with locals and field guides. Historical incidents, like I previously mentioned in his other work "THE ANARCHY", is the core of his work. His work flows in Reverse Chronology. From Modern history to Ancient history of India, his this technique is intriguing yet interesting. So at times, it becomes predictable what may follow next if you are already aware of Indian History. Yet, his perspective has a potential to add new leash to the narrative.

Starts from British in India and their occupation of Delhi after the mutiny of 1857 and takes you into personal lives of British officers like William Fraser. Their contribution in architecture as well as memoirs has been well recognized and documented. You then take a back seat in to Mughal era. Their architectural achievements and their legacy to Delhi has been portrayed. The legacy of Mughals with respect to societal developments has also been highlighted. Particularly of interest being etiquette of aristocratic Delhi, sporting pleasures of nobles, etc. Mr. William traces out one of the last surviving Mughal descendent and tries to acquire insights into and of their family tree. Again you take a back seat and further find yourself awash in to Sultanate period. Although the contribution of Sultanate period in terms of architecture is meagre, certain administrative measures of the period especially during Muhammad Bin Tughlaq's reign that went into a debacle, were elaborately mentioned. The extensive research in this part accrues from memoirs of various foreign travelers of the time like Ibn Battuta can be seen here. As we again move backwards in History, we come across contributions and legacies on kingdoms in and around Delhi, but this time quite less than their later counterparts. However, evidence of PAINTED GREY WARE pottery around Nigambodh ghat-One of the oldest places in Delhi-helps us trace the history of this Historical place to ancient times. This way Mr. William tries to trace the history of Delhi.

Let me focus on the title of the book. Clearly when you search for the meaning of DJINN, you tread across mythical realms. The Book with such a title thus would demand a portion particularly on The Mythical Aspect. Mr. William's work tries to address this demand, in fact, he also takes on a research and meet certain persons in OLD DELHI to vindicate the Title. His work serves you a platter that has Originality and Rationality although with a tinge of superstitious elements, which he leaves unto readers to decide for! And hence at some point it seems Myths may be real where logic fades.

While reading you might have to struggle to keep pace with the narration. As stories and characters shift, you can at times find yourself in bewilderment, this might be due to the employment of Reverse Chronology technique, I guess. However the flow of narration is precise to ensure you are diverted to track gradually. As we approach last pages, we expect something dramatic (Generic of us), however the end portion in this work disappoints you, as you fail to receive as per your expectation.

Overall, the book enhances your inventory of information on Historical Cities, this time, Delhi. This is a must read for those residing in and around Delhi since imagining to be part of a place which shares historical roots, gives you Goosebumps already!