Beyond Khan Market: A Walk Through Delhi’s Hidden Heritage and Forgotten Stories

Some places feel like old friends—you think you know them inside out, yet they still manage to surprise you. Delhi is one such city. No matter how many times you walk its streets, there’s always another layer waiting to be discovered.

Heritage walks are the best way to uncover these hidden gems in any city. Unlike a hurried drive past monuments or a quick Google search, a guided walk lets you immerse yourself in the stories, architecture, and forgotten corners of a place. This weekend, a heritage walk with Dushyant Singh led me through Khan Market, Sujan Singh Park, and the Judah Hyam Synagogue—places I had visited countless times before, yet never truly seen.

Khan Market: A Market of Memories and History

Our walk began at Khan Market, a place synonymous with high-end boutiques, buzzing cafés, and some of Delhi’s best bookstores. But behind its modern reputation lies a history of resilience.

Established in 1951, Khan Market was originally built to rehabilitate refugees from the North-West Frontier Province (now in Pakistan) after Partition. It was named after Khan Abdul Jabbar Khan, the elder brother of Khan Abdul Ghaffar Khan (Frontier Gandhi). Over the years, what started as a simple market evolved into one of Delhi’s most elite commercial hubs.

For me, Khan Market is more than just a shopping street. My first visit in 2000 was about gole gappe with my girlfriends after work. We would gather around a corner sweet shop, daring each other to eat the spiciest puri, wiping away tears from the heat, and laughing over who had to buy the next round.

Amidst its transformation, some places have stood still in time—like Bahri Sons and Faqir Chand & Sons, bookstores that have existed since 1951. These shops have been a sanctuary for book lovers, surviving in a world increasingly dominated by screens.

But what I had never realized was what lay just behind Khan Market.

The Forgotten Cemeteries of Khan Market

Hidden behind Khan Market are three historic cemeteries—the Parsi Cemetery, the Jewish Cemetery, and the Christian Cemetery.

Walking through them, I felt like I had stumbled into a forgotten world:

• The Parsi Cemetery is one of Delhi’s few remaining burial sites for the Zoroastrian community. Unlike Mumbai, where Parsis follow the tradition of sky burials, Delhi’s Parsis had to adapt to ground burials.
• The Jewish Cemetery, adjacent to the Judah Hyam Synagogue, contains graves dating back to the 19th century. It is also the resting place of Lieutenant General JFR Jacob, a hero of the 1971 Indo-Pak War.
• The Christian Cemetery holds the graves of British officers, missionaries, and Anglo-Indians. The weathered tombstones tell the stories of an era that has slowly faded from public memory.

It was surreal to stand in these silent, overgrown spaces, knowing that just a few meters away, Khan Market was bustling with shoppers and café-goers.

Sujan Singh Park: A Nostalgic Return to Old Delhi Charm

From Khan Market, we walked toward Sujan Singh Park, a place I had visited before but never explored through a historical lens.

Built in the 1940s, Sujan Singh Park was Delhi’s first planned apartment complex, designed by Walter Sykes George and named after Sardar Sujan Singh, a prominent contractor from Punjab. With its colonial-era red-brick buildings, bougainvillea-laden balconies, and old-world charm, it feels like a slice of another era hidden in modern Delhi.

It was home to many notable residents, including Khushwant Singh, whose literary legacy is still alive in Delhi’s cultural circles. The stark contrast between servant quarters on one side and grand residences on the other was a reminder of how Delhi’s social structures have evolved over the decades.

But for me, Sujan Singh Park is deeply tied to food memories.

Inside the Ambassador Hotel, within Sujan Singh Park, was Dasaprakash, a legendary fine-dining South Indian restaurant. Whenever my NRI family visited, they would insist on going there for crispy dosas, steaming Kachipuram idlis, and filter coffee, savoring the flavors they missed abroad.

Even though the restaurant is long gone, the nostalgia lingers. Walking through Sujan Singh Park, I could almost smell the dosas, hear the clinking of steel tumblers filled with coffee, and feel the warmth of those family gatherings.

Judah Hyam Synagogue: A Hidden Sanctuary of Faith

Despite having driven past Khan Market countless times, I had never noticed the Judah Hyam Synagogue. It took this walk for me to step inside and realize how Delhi quietly holds within it pieces of global history.

Built in 1956, the Judah Hyam Synagogue is Delhi’s only Jewish place of worship. Unlike the grand temples and mosques of the city, it has a quiet, understated presence, making it easy to miss.

Stepping inside, I was struck by its intimate and deeply spiritual atmosphere. The wooden pew.For the first time, I met Rabbi Malekar, who spoke about Delhi’s Jewish community. Once a thriving group of traders and diplomats, their numbers have now dwindled, but the synagogue remains a place of faith and heritage.

Inside the meeting hall, I came across something truly extraordinary—a 500-year-old Torah,protected by good old Indian camphor 🙂

Seeing an ancient, handwritten Jewish scripture, preserved through centuries, was humbling. In a city where Mughal and British histories dominate, this Torah was a reminder of a quieter, lesser-known chapter of Delhi’s past.

I also visited the community hall, where Jewish families gather for celebrations and religious events. Though their numbers have declined, the hall still echoes with past traditions, preserving a culture that once thrived here.

Why Heritage Walks Are the Best Way to Explore a City

As our walk came to an end, I realized how much of Delhi remains unseen, even for those of us who have lived here for years.

From my childhood meals at Dasaprakash to giggling over street food in Khan Market, and finally, to discovering forgotten cemeteries and a 500-year-old Torah, this walk was a journey across time, personal memories, and rediscovery.

Heritage walks are the best way to explore a city, whether it’s Delhi or anywhere else in the world. Unlike hurried sightseeing, they allow you to pause, observe, and truly engage with a place. They help you notice the hidden details, understand the stories behind buildings, and sometimes, even connect with your own past in unexpected ways.

Delhi is a city of contrasts—where the past coexists with the present, where forgotten cemeteries lie behind shopping streets, and where a small synagogue houses a relic older than many of the city’s monuments.I may have passed by the Judah Hyam Synagogue a thousand times without noticing it, but now, I will never unsee it.

And that’s the magic of heritage walks—no matter how well you think you know a place, there’s always something new waiting to be discovered.