A Trip To Firoz Shah Kotla

Firoz Shah Kotla by Ruchita Belapurkar

I’m doing architectural conservation from SPA and we are a class of fourteen with varied interests. None of us hail from Delhi and are keen on exploring Delhi. The first task was a perfect occasion to explore a new place and we all bonded over it. On an unexpectedly warm day in the Delhi winters, we decided to make an outing of it.


The class has people coming from all over India and having a variety of interests. Gopika and Jessin like to sketch and Sudipta likes architectural photography. Sneha is an avid birdwatcher and nature lover while Archana likes to sit silently and read.

Firoz Shah Kotla has something to interest everyone. It has an environment suitable for sketching. Both Gopika and Jessin can spend hours sitting under the shade of a tree sketching the fascinating mosque and Ashokan pillar.

Sudipta has captured most of Shahajanabad and Humayuns Tomb through her lenses already. She has a fascination for capturing architecture and especially monuments and ruins. The Feroz Shah ruins lit in the rays of the setting sun offer a perfect subject to her hobby.

Sneha is a nature lover and loves to wander about in gardens and parks. The manicured lawns and gardens of the Fort are also an ideal place to spot birds as well as the Thursday ritual of feeding the hawks is an event bound to interest her.


Archana is an introvert who likes to read in peace and quiet. The vast ground of Kotla offers her plenty of shade and peace. The occasional tourist or locals do not intrude upon your privacy and the immense walls act as a buffer to the city sounds.

As a class, all of us are interested in history and architecture. This was reason enough for us to go and visit Firoz Shah Kotla together. Each of my friends mentioned above promised to visit Feroz Shah Kotla to engage in their hobbies.