87 year old Nigel Hankin has been living in New Delhi since the British left when they ceded Independence to the Indians – and if you’re lucky, you might be able to find him to take you on a magical tour of India’s capital city
NEW DELHI (AFP) – Almost everything about the “Nigel tour” of Delhi is far from the usual, right down to seeking an appointment: the 87-year-old Hankin does not have a telephone or an Internet connection. Word travels by mouth mostly among diplomats and foreign tourists.
“This is not a regular tour. Please do not mention how to get in touch with me, or there would be a stream of visitors,” the gaunt expatriate warns at the start of a day-long trip through a city he made his home nearly 60 years ago, one of the last former colonials to remain in this vast country.
Hankin came to India on his way to Burma (now Myanmar) where he was sent to fight in World War II. The war ended before the British soldier could get there, and he remained in India instead.
Two years later in 1947 — the year India gained freedom from its colonial masters — Hankin came to the capital New Delhi, which the British had made the seat of what was once famously called the “jewel in the crown”.
“I just loved it when I first came here. The place was so open then. There used to be so many deer, and we would go hunting,” recalls the octogenarian, whose age has not diminished any memories.
When the sun finally did set on the British Empire and as his colleagues started to leave, Hankin knew immediately where his home would be.
“I liked the weather here. There were wonderful hills and clear blue waters, but equally the most appalling slums,” he says of his fondness for a country he has never once thought of leaving since.
After quitting the British army as a captain, Hankin joined the British High Commission, where his “odd jobs” often included taking diplomats and their wives around the city — something he has done for the past 50 years.
Since his retirement around 20 years ago, Hankin has conducted regular tours, for which one has to pay 2,000 rupees (about 45 dollars) per person and buy him lunch at the colonial-era Oberoi Maiden’s hotel.
You can also buy a copy of his book, Hanklin Janklin, an idiosyncratic list of commonly seen items and phrases complied by Hankin and now being readied for its fifth edition.
Read the full, fascinating article at sawf.org
Stay In Touch With Travelhappy!
If you enjoyed this post, sign up by Email or RSS to be notified of future updates. You can also follow me on Twitter - I'm @travelhappy
{ 0 comments… add one now }