Mayank Austen Soofi is a Delhi-based Indian writer, blogger and photojournalist, who writes popular columns for Hindustan Times and Mint on culture, food and literary landscapes of Delhi.
Mayank Austen Soofi | |
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Nationality | Indian |
Occupation | Writer, blogger, and photojournalist |
Known for | Delhiwale |
He is best known for his website and blog, Delhiwale, a multifaceted guide of the city, that has been praised as being "the most compelling guide to India's capital" (The Independent)[1] and "a one-man encyclopedia of the city" (Time Out Delhi).[2]
Soofi was born in Nainital in the mountains of Uttarakhand and moved to Delhi around 2004.[3] He uses 'Austen' as his middle name as a tribute to the author Jane Austen, about whom he often blogs.[4][5] His writings were featured in Volume 4 of "Penguin Book of New Writing from India" published by Penguin.[6]
In 2011, he published four alternative guidebooks to the city of Delhi: The Delhi Walla - Portraits, Delhi Food, Delhi Hangouts and Delhi Monuments.[7] His latest book Nobody Can Love You More, published in 2012 by Penguin Books, deals with the life of a 'kotha', Hindi for brothel, in Delhi's largest red-light district, G. B. Road, which is home to 5,000 sex workers.[8][9][10]
Also well known for his popular columns on Delhi in the city supplement of Hindustan Times titled "The Delhiwalla",[11] Soofi now writes a column, "Delhi's Belly", for the weekend supplement of the business newspaper Mint.[3][12]
He has initiated many projects, including Mission Delhi, which aims to profile 1% of Delhi's 14 million people,[13] and a blog dedicated to Arundhati Roy's debut novel, The God of Small Things, and to its readers. He recently started a reading club called The Delhi Proustians, which centers around the French novelist Marcel Proust and his seven volume novel, In Search of Lost Time.[14]
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National libraries |