ABSTRACT
Chapter 7 presents Delhi's post-uprising, twentieth-century avatars. The first as Historic Delhi whose Mughal legacy was instrumentalized by the Raj to establish its political legitimacy. Delhi hosted three Durbars to celebrate political milestones in 1877, 1902 and 1911. These were planned as grand, public festivals. Large encampments, i.e., Temporary Delhis, thematically based on the Mughal design vocabulary, came up on the Ridge as Durbar venues, while the city's urban space and Mughal architectural remains, notably the Qila, served as props to reinforce the Mughal British continuum. Following the 1911 Durbar, Delhi mutated into Old Delhi, as the predecessor and future neighbour of New Delhi, the new capital of British India to be built in its vicinity. New Delhi's relationship with Old and older Delhis was rather cursory. While New Delhi turned its back on Old Delhi, select architectural remains of older Delhis were incorporated in its layout to manufacture its historic legacy. Old Delhi however, could not be wished away owing to its proximity to New Delhi. It was declared as a slum that threatened New Delhi's wellbeing and propelled the Raj to transform it into a worthy neighbour. With little success, both insalubrious Old Delhi and sanitized New Delhi were inherited by independent India as a colonial legacy.
