Adrija Roychowdhury

Journalist | Historian | Author

About: Adrija Roychowdhury graduated from NYU with a Major in European and Mediterranean Studies. A journalist with The Indian Express, she writes features on history, world, national politics and social issues. Widely travelled across three continents, Adrija brings precision and perfection to her journalistic prose in all her writing, mastering the art of archival reportage.

BOOK

Name: DELHI, IN THY NAME: THE MANY LEGENDS THAT MAKE A CITY

Description:

Why is the heart of Delhi named after an obscure British scion? How is South Delhi’s Saket related to Lord Rama’s birthplace Ayodhya? Shaheen Bagh is the seat of Muslim resistance. But what does Shaheen mean to the Indian Muslim? To tell us the story of Delhi, journalist Adrija Roychowdhury takes a deep dive into the legends behind the names of its many streets. Delhi, in Thy Name is a compelling account of the many emotions, aspirations, desires, identities, histories and memories that went behind the naming of places in the national capital of India.

From the crevices of Chandni Chowk to the arcades of Connaught Place and the quarters of CR Park, the book delves into the little secrets that went behind naming Delhi, as recounted by the people of the city. Exhaustively researched and passionately told, the book is an attempt to decode what the act of naming and renaming means both to those in power and to those being governed. The book provides a key to Delhi, opening its doors to the readers in the very way that the city likes to think of itself—as alluring, energetic, infuriating, lyrical, nostalgic, frustrating, unforgettable, magical.