CHANDI KA WARQ IN OLD DELHI LOSES SHINE

INSIDE the narrow, bustling lanes of Old Delhi, just past the arched gateway of Turkman Gate and into the quieter alleys of Phatak Telian, time once shimmered—literally.

- IFRAH MUFTI @New Delhi

For decades, this tucked-away locality echoed with the rhythmic thud of hammers, beating silver into impossibly thin sheets, known locally as chandi ka warq. Today, that sound has disappeared; replaced by the honk of two-wheelers, the chatter of street vendors, and the creaking of old wooden doors hiding memories of a vanishing trade.

Not only Turkman Gate but Churiwalan, Khari Baoli, Matia Mahal and Chitli Qabar were other places where the manufacturers of silver leaves, lived and made an earning.

The craft of making chandi ka warq, those delicate silver foils that adorn Indian sweets, paan, and even Ayurvedic medicines, was once a thriving cottage industry here. The process was entirely manual. Small lumps of pure silver were placed between layers of ox gut or specially-treated animal membrane, and then beaten for hours until they stretched into gossamer-thin sheets—often thinner than human hair.

"This house used to shine with silver," said a 68-year-old wife of Haji Mumtiaz recalling the days his husband who died ten years ago used to make the 'warq' just outside his small house situated in Phatak Telian.