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Top eating joints for Delhi University vegetarians – North and South Campus

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It is often said that being a vegetarian is a ‘missed stake’. One spends all his life fighting the non-vegetarian lot and bearing the consequences of being a ‘ghaas-phoos’ eater.

The decision to live a vegetarian lifestyle is a noble one but the world can be an extremely cruel place for a vegetarian. While your non-vegetarian group of friends can grab a bite at swanky places like KFC or Burger King, your best bet is probably the Indian KFC-Karnataka Food Centre (idli or dosa, anyone?)

However, if you study at Delhi University, there is still hope for you. Both North and South Campus areas offer some amazing eateries that present lip-smacking delicacies (at pocket friendly rates, of course) for the small, yet swelling vegetarian community.

North Campus Veg Fiesta

1. Chache Di Hatti, Kamla Nagar
Chache Di Hatti serves the best plate of Chole Bhature in the over-populated North Campus. Seasons come and go, but the crowd outside Hatti never dwindles. The menu is completely vegetarian, though limited. They offer only aloo wale bhatoore, sade bhatoore, kulche and chhole accompanied with rich flavours. It’s a must visit if you enjoy Punjabi street food and don’t mind waiting in long queues. There is also a lack of seating space.

2. Tom Uncle’s Maggie Point
Don’t let the name fool you. Tom Uncle really knows how to take something as basic (and unassuming) as maggie and turn it into a plate that is nothing short of sheer genius recipe. One of its highlights is the extensive vegetarian menu. 90% of his menu is vegetarian, with the exception of certain egg based items. Other than maggie, you can also get pasta, chaat and beverages. Their Oregano Maggie and All in One Maggie are big hits with the students.

Tom Uncles Maggi Point, North Campus |Source: Volunteer India
Tom Uncles Maggi Point, North Campus |Source: Volunteer India

3. Apni Rasoi, GTB Nagar
In the mood for some ‘ghar ka khaana’? Apni Rasoi is the answer to your earnest prayers. Though they offer Chinese, it is believed that their North Indian variants are the best on Campus! Popular choices include kadhai paneer, dal makhni and lachha parantha. If you have a hard time deciding across dishes, you can play it safe and opt for the vegetarian thali. It serves 100% vegetarian food. They even deliver and according to campus lore, they are every hostellers’ go-to restaurant.

South Campus Veggie Extravaganza

1. FrenZone, Satya Niketan
A satisfied customer is essential for business survival. At FrenZone, you can always expect value for money services. The waiting period here is quite less and the waiters are well-trained and intuitive. This eatery is ideal for vegetarians because they can choose from a wide variety of items. The menu offers equal number of vegetarian and non-vegetarian dishes. In fact, the veg ‘sandwiches &burgers’ are more in number than the non-veg ones. The vegetarian tandoori food is definitely the highlight.

Frenzone's menu for 'sandwiches and burgers'
Frenzone’s menu for ‘sandwiches and burgers’ | Source: Zomato

2. Idli King, Satya Niketan
South Indian food is every vegetarian’s refuge because all dishes of this cuisine are purely vegetarian. Idli King does an extremely good job of offering some of the classic South Indian delicacies, keeping the southern flavours intact. If you enjoy authentic South Indian snacks like rice idlis, vada and upma or dosas and uttapams, you will surely appreciate this restaurant. They also whip up some amazing tomato and coconut chutney.

3. Chowringhee, Satya Niketan
Chinese food is what Chowringhee specializes in. Chowringhee has ample veggie options available, along with the standard non-vegetarian dishes. For instance, they have three varieties of equally popular ‘thukpas‘ – vegetarian, egg and chicken thukpa.

Chowringhee, Satyaniketan's menu |Source: Zomato
Chowringhee, Satyaniketan’s menu |Source: Zomato

Many people tend to overlook Chowringhee’s tandoori momos. Chowringhee has a great variety of vegetarian rolls on offer too!

DU Vegetarians, follow this list and fraternize with the wonderful food that our campus has to offer! Bon appetite!

Feature Image : Chache Di Hatti, North Campus
Image Source: Projects Jugaad

Kriti Sharma
[email protected]

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Top Picks

6 things Delhi University students do in Winter

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November is halfway through and is being accompanied by a sharp drop in the temperature. Now opinions may differ from person to person about the famous ‘Dilli ki sardi’, but one cannot possibly escape the fun that the short span of winters bring in the otherwise scorching hot weather of Delhi.

Here are a few things which come along the cold:

 

1. Morning Classes Blues

 

Yes I know. Half of our population simply dreads the idea of letting go of the heavenly warm morning bed and that too to attend the early morning classes. A bit over sensitive to the cold, the attendance of morning lectures of these people drop faster than the temperature outside.

 

2. The DU winter break

 

If you have friends in other universities, you will certainly know how lucky you are to have an extended, nearly a month long break during winters, which most of them don’t get. So while other people are still preparing for exams, we are spending mornings in our beds, lethargically waiting for Christmas and New Year parties.

 

3. The Wardrobe Woes

 

One thing that we certainly don’t like is the piling up of fabric when it just gets too cold to handle. The worst feeling is that when you put on your battle shields to fight the weather outside and there always remains some place from where the cold manages to seep inside mocking you right in your face, almost saying, ‘You can’t escape’ with an evil smile.

 

4. Nescafe jams for coffee

 

After almost every class, you will find hoards of students jamming the college Nescafe for coffees. Holding the hot elixir in paper cups in your hands is just the best feeling you can get on a chilling foggy day.

 

5. Daytime outings

 

Has it not happened a lot of times already, that you want to go out with your friends on an outdoor trip but refrained from doing so because it’s just too hot all the time? Well! Now is coming the best time to explore the monuments, popular gardens and you will not even have to worry about the uncomfortable heat.
Go plan a trip and compile an exclusive winter playlist for it.

 

6. The evening college dreams

 

All of a sudden, the life of kids in the evening colleges starts appearing like a paradise. Every time you wake up to that alarm of 6 in the morning, you dream if you were one of those lucky ones too who have the liberty to sleep as long as they wish for.

Featured image credit: www.distrends.com

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Top Picks

5 scary situations Delhi University students dread

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Halloween, as a festival, has always been associated with scary and morbid themes- after all many cultures remember the dead on this particular day. While it’s not a commonly celebrated festival in India (and let’s face it, we hardly have a dearth of holidays to celebrate), keeping with the spirit of the holiday, we decided to take a look at some situations that are scary enough to give Delhi University students nightmares.

The Metro stops functioning for a prolonged period of time

The beloved DMRC is essentially a lifeline for many DU students who travel from far off corners of the city (or to far off corners of the city-off campus colleges, anyone?) In such a scenario, if anything were to happen that disrupts our daily metro commute, whether it’s a technical glitch or a prolonged delay, we’d be left cribbing and annoyed, because most of the alternatives aren’t comfortable or cheap.

Any new change brought in for the current second year students 

Seriously, haven’t these poor kids had enough? DU has always introduced changes in the system, but I think we can all agree that the FYUP introduction and the eventual roll back of the same, takes the cake. Not just that, but this is the ‘guinea pig batch’ who also started off with the CCE system. Any more such changes might set these disturbed students off balance. It hurts to even joke about it!

Studying for the wrong paper/subject

Now, this may or may not have happened to me, but imagine a situation where. for whatever reason, you studied for the wrong exam (internal or external) and realised your mistake a few minutes before entering the exam hall. Terrifying, right?

Getting an ER or a ‘back’, as it’s affectionately called

As if studying for a paper you obviously didn’t understand much of wasn’t scary enough, imagine getting an ER in that dreaded subject! ERs are no joking matter- many students spend sleepless nights tossing and turning, praying that they avoid this ordeal in their college life!

A dangerously low attendance record

The semester is almost over, and the study break is about to start in a couple of weeks. Bunking all those classes now seems like a bad idea. This is especially true for those who study in colleges that are super strict about attendance records. If you’re from one of those colleges, you know you’ve had minor panic attacks over this! Of course, it doesn’t help when you hear of stories of students getting admit cards for exams despite getting an abysmal attendance figure.

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Indraprastha College for Women

Diwali festivities across Delhi University

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Delhi University is in the habit of going beyond the cliché, bringing out exclusiveness in everything it does. With people’s houses being festooned with illuminations one by one and the market flooding with myriad diyas and candles, DU colleges celebrated the festival of lights in their own distinctive way. Jesus and Mary College, Gargi College, Lady Shri Ram College for Women and Indraprastha College for Women saw its students dressing up the Indian way and celebrating the festivities with beats of music and shopping their hearts away at the NSS Diwali Melas. Here’s a peek into the exuberance of festivities celebrated by these colleges.

Kamala Nerhu College

Every year, the NSS unit and the Students Union organize an NGO cum Diwali Mela where they invite about 20-25 NGOs to provide them with a platform to not only generate awareness about the various works that they have been doing but also to showcase the talent of the people associated or being helped through these NGOs. On the auspicious occasion of Diwali the mela is organized keeping in mind with the festivities. Adrith’14 was graced with the presence of about 22 NGOs like Save the Quest, Umeed, Rhythm of Life and Can Support.

 

Jesus and Mary College

15th October, 2014- merely a week away from the most widely celebrated festival of India, JMC organised its annual Sparsh Diwali Mela. The college’s amphitheatre was decorated with brightly coloured dupattas and attractive stalls. Apart from the usual Chaat and Pao Bhaaji stalls, the Mela had stalls selling quirky pajamas, customized t-shirts, Kurtis, bangles and other accessories.

 

Gargi College

The much-talked about college for Diwali Melas organised Zistatva, its annual NSS Diwali Mela on 17th October. The engrossing games, the diverse stalls offering multitude of varieties for multitude of choices along with the musical beats added a lot more charisma to the atmosphere. The photo-booth was a major attraction where all you needed was to dress up the way you like and let the funky accessories colour your life.

 

Indraprastha College

IP College  organised its Diwali Mela on 18th October. Among the highlights of the Mela was the Enactus Society fundraiser stall. Conventional food and games stalls attracted huge crowd too. Keeping the Indian festive spirit alive, all stalls made offerings to the kids of the non-teaching staff of the college that served as a perfect culmination of the event.

 

Lady Shri Ram College for Women

Diwali Mela at LSR  was a roaring success. 18th October saw LSR getting together to celebrate the beauty of Diwali. From Kurtis to T-Shirts, Pao Bhaaji to Cakes; it was a perfect setting to celebrate the diversity of this festival. The Mela was a shopper’s paradise and met the expectations of spectators and visitors alike.

 

Arushi Pathak
[email protected]

With Inputs from: Vani Vivek, Shaily Sharma, Aditi Soni, Kritika Narula and Mugdha

Image credits: Mugdha for DU Beat

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Interviews

In conversation with Aayushi Gupta: University Gold medalist in Shooting and an Economics student at LSR

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Delhi University has always had its fair share of rising sports stars from a variety of fields and Aayushi Gupta, a third year Economics student from Lady Shri Ram College for Women is indeed one of them. Hailing from Agra, this shooter has not only done her college and University proud, but has also proved her mettle at numerous international competitions. She has been on the national team since her first year in college and went on to become the University Gold medalist in shooting this year. She has been consistently winning the Gold at the U.P. State Championships and North Zone Championships for the past 3 years. Earlier this year, she represented India at shooting championships in Spain, Germany and the Czech Republic (where she bagged the Bronze medal). It then comes as no surprise that she’s currently ranked No. 1 in the Juniors category in India in her sport!

DU Beat managed to get in touch with Aayushi to talk about shooting, the support DU extends to its sportspersons and what her targets for the rest of the year are.

Tell us about your journey as a shooter. How did you first get involved in the sport?

My journey as a shooter has been wonderful. The good performances have given me power and much confidence. Even the worst of my performances have taught me a lot and made me better.
I had always been a sportsperson at school, playing all the sports I could. Then one day the shooting range was inaugurated at school. I went to have a look. I had never had a first hand experience at even holding a rifle or the sport before that. The thought of the bullet shot by me hitting that small target 10mts away was what gave me the thrill. I never looked back after that.

What’s been your proudest moment so far?

My proudest moment so far was just recently, when I was climbing the podium in Plzen, Czech Republic, and the anchor there said, “The bronze medal goes to Gupta Aayushi, FROM INDIA!”
That was when I had goose bumps. I was so proud that I could do my nation proud.

 

Who are the people in your life who inspire and encourage you the most?

As a shooter, it’s Ma’am Anjali Bhagwat who inspires me a lot. After that, as a person, it’s my father who encourages and inspires me. That’s where all my strength comes from. He is the person who first told me take up the sport as a career. And then there’s my mother and brother, my coaches, and my school and college friends, my sporting friends who have encouraged me a lot.

Would you say that the University provides all required support to ensure you can give your 100% during competitive events? Is it largely due to the training in college that a lot of shooters from DU end up doing the country proud at events like the Commonwealth Games?

Delhi University does a lot for its sportspersons, supports them and encourages them. It may not be the “all required support” for some, but for me it is all that I require and it definitely means a lot. A lot of shooters I know come from Delhi University and have done the country proud at many international events. Training at college and how a shooter learns from it is very objective; everyone has a different training style, but the kind of support one gets from their college authorities and their teachers is what really matters. And I’m happy that I get that support and encouragement!

What are some of the big goals you have lined up for the rest of the academic session?

I have less than a year left as an undergraduate at Delhi University, and I want to make it count. There are the inter college and inter university events coming up soon, performing to my best is my goal. Improving myself as a shooter is always my next goal. But as target championships, there are University Nationals, Open Nationals and the Asian Championship lined up for now.

Apart from sports, what activities do you enjoy? How do you unwind after a long day of practice?

It’s sports I enjoy the most. But it would be listening to music and dancing that would come next. I love travelling and adventure sports, though I have not got much time for either due to my training and championships. Whenever I get little time in between training sessions and championships and college, I try going back to Agra and be with family and my school friends.

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Features

People’s Climate March to be Held in Delhi on September 20th

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People’s climate march is being organized for Delhi’s youth on September 20th 2014. The march is set up ahead of United Nations Summit on Climate change in New York on September 23  lead by UN Secretary General Mr. Ban Ki Moon. This march continues the global trend where in youth, considered as the change makers with their profound zeal and enthusiasm to march together and send across a message to Global Leaders for stronger and binding action on Climate Change, which continues to be a global environmental concern.

Focusing on issues such as using alternative and environment friendly resources with a global and practical perspective, this march also marks the youth’s concern for their upcoming generations, demanding legal and feasible solutions from their Diplomats.

There are 120 countries participating in the summit for a universal and meaningful climate agreement for the upcoming year on September 23. However, India does not mark its presence in the list of attendance. This march is also aimed for sending across a peaceful message to the concerned authorities that India being a developing country, leads in the usage of thermal power plants to keep up with their electricity requirements.

 

 

This is not only a global environmental concern but it also contributes to the hideous lifestyles and poor surviving conditions of the less fortunate living around these plants.  Moreover, not having a future alternative for a Non-Renewable source of energy is an invitation for catastrophe both environmentally and economically for our country.

With Prominent speakers like Kavita Krishnan (All India Progressive Women’s Association) and Bulbul Dhar James (Human Rights Activist) alongside recent Jammu and Kashmir flood survivors amongst others, turning up the share their opinions on the issue, this event aims to reach out to masses, especially the youth. Many students from Delhi University colleges like Gargi and Ramjas have also been lending full support. From making handmade visuals and placards to dressing up as characters sending across strong messages, more than 2000 students across the city have volunteered for the event.

The march is scheduled to start at 9 am from Nepal Embassy (near Mandi House metro station) and will hault at Jantar Mantar, where it is scheduled to reach at 1pm. With self sponsored organizations such as 350.org, Avaaz.org, India Climate Justice Network and Pravah participating, this event wishes to reach out to DU students, who are welcome to lend support and be a part of this prominent environmental and social cause.

If you wish to participate or are looking for further details regarding the event, visit https://www.facebook.com/events/733434846721991/.

 

Amitoj Singh

[email protected]

 

 

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DUB Speak

From the outland caterpillar to the Delhi Butterfly

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A journey of any outstation student at Delhi University is quite similar to the metamorphosis of a butterfly from a caterpillar, developing wings and getting all set to fly high in this big and often bad world. My journey into this ‘Walled City’ began two years ago with a dream to study in the most prestigious university of the country and thus I set on the trajectory to climb the walls of my ambitions by getting admission here. My initial days in Delhi taught me how to fly and explore the multitude opportunities that were yet to unfold upon me and here I am now, a proud and seasoned butterfly studying at Delhi University!

Living away from family, fending for daily provisions and adapting into a totally new atmosphere ,entwined with several hitches, encountered time to time at your college, PG or a hostel makes life of an outstation student here a one-of-a kind story to narrate. Whether it’s an awful meal that you have to force down your throat or a terrible remembrance of mom when you’re sick, life offers a new lesson at every stage when you’re living away from home.

The welcoming conduct of many Delhiites often takes you by surprise while you still go back to memories of school and home but by the time we understand that to live away from home is one sacrifice that we have to endure for a better future, we inculcate the signature ‘Delhiwalla’ traits in our souls. After all, being in DU, studying with people from different background and cultures is an experience in itself.

Though there is no substitute for the place where your roots are which you proudly call ‘home’, living away from parents is a chance to choose your own family, the ones you hope will keep you company on a sick day or a home sick night. To be an outstation student at Delhi University might make you jealous of Delhiites comfortably living with parents and family at first, but you never know how they might be missing the independence and the multitude learnings that you derive by living away from home.

So my message for all outstation students who are embarking on a journey at DU this year-It’s time to break the cocoon, flutter your wings and fly away towards your dreams like a butterfly!

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Campus Central

Teacher’s Day celebrations across Delhi University

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the Yagyashala where the Principal, Dr.V.K Kawatra, teachers and many students gathered and prayed for everyone’s happiness and prosperity. This was followed by a cleanliness drive organized by NSS Hansraj and a speech by Mr.Poonam Suri, Chairman of the DAV College Managing Committee. Lady Shri Ram College for Women also organized an hour-long program which started with an instrumental performance by the music societies of the College. There was also a collaborative performance by the Indian Music Society and the Western Music Society which impersonated the teachers and students respectively, voicing their emotions through well-chosen and witty songs. This performance was followed by an act performed by the Dramatics Society of the College with the Dance Society performing in between. The movie presented by Projekt, Film and Photography Society of the College, received a standing ovation by the Vice Principal. Cultural events were hosted at Jesus and Mary College. Students from the Commerce department at JMC gave dance performances which surely brought smiles to the faces of their teachers. Thus, the day which also marks the birth of Dr.Radhakrishnan was celebrated with great enthusiasm in colleges across North as well as South Campus. Shaurya Sahai [email protected] Image Credits: Mugdha [email protected]]]>

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DUB Speak

Bipin Chandra – A life well lived.

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Bipin Chandra, it wasn’t the first time we had heard the name. In almost every Indian history lecture the name was repeatedly announced for the authors we needed to consult. Without actually knowing the iconic historian all students of history knew him for all the help his books had been in the last minute finishing up of assignments.
Born on 27 May 1928, Bipin Chandra bid his final goodbye to the world of history on 30th August 2014.
Bipin sir had not just one but many achievements under his belt and even after his departure he would continue to be a huge part of the history world for teachers and students alike.
He had completed his Ph.D from the University of Delhi after completing his education at Stanford University.
For many years he graced Hindu College as a lecturer and then a reader and one of his students and current professor at Hindu College, Mrs. Suchitra Gupta talked about his good old professor days and his passion for history at a condolence meeting organized by the history department of Hindu College on 1st of September. He then joined the Jawaharlal Nehru University as a professor of history but his career did not pause there. He was also the General President of the Indian History Congress in 1985 along with being a member of the University Grants Commission in 1993 and the Chairman of the National Book Trust, Delhi from 2004-2012.
In 2010, he reached heights by winning the Padma Bhushan Award. Bipin Sir carved a niche for himself in the historical world and while his body won’t be around anymore his ideas through books like Making of Modern India, In the Name of Democracy, Essays on Contemporary India, India’s Struggle for Independence 1857-1947 among many more will stay with us forever.

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News

Aiesec’s Delhi University Chapter holds Youth to Business Forum

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Aiesec’s Delhi University Chapter recently held its annual Youth to Business Forum at Indian Habitat Center, New Delhi on 30th July.

This year, Youth to Business Forum saw participation of speakers from various MNCs and popular brands. While, most of the speakers were Delhi University Alumni, there were also a few artists and entrepreneurs who didn’t attend any college at all.  The session was jam-packed with young national and international delegates.

The whole event was divided into six panel discussions that touched topics such as media and journalism, entrepreneurship, art and innovation.

Session 1:

The Strategy of Innovation

The session was led by many corporate big guns such as Coca Cola India Head – Harish Chaturvedi, Hero Motocorp, Microsoft and Budweiser. The discussion revolved around how various companies are coming up with new ways bringing innovation in their work culture. Kamal from Mircosoft told the audience about their policy to send company’s employees to other places to explore new places to get more ideas.

Session 2:

The Joy of Media

The discussion saw the participation of Sagnik Dutta, from Frontline and Amit Tandon, stand up comedian. They talked about various issues pertaining to short life of news these days, especially on social media. Amit quoted many hilarious examples where people unnecessarily waste their time in commenting and discussing things online. Both the speakers also concluded that the commercialization of activism should be stopped.

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Session 3:

The Thrill of Entrepreneurship

The discussion on the thrill of entrepreneurship saw the presence of four young successful entrepreneurs from Delhi University. Throughout the session, they discussed about their personal life experiences with their startups. “Startup seems to be very flashy from outside, but it is not at all a bed of roses”, said Mayank Bhateja, CEO of Letsintern.  Prerna Mukharya, founder of Outline India, was a great motivation for all the women delegates in the auditorium, She explained how difficult it was for her to become an entrepreneur, but all she had was perseverance and it helped.

Session 4:

The Power of Success

The final session of the day was chaired by the young artists who chose their own path and made a huge difference. The panel consisted of Akshay Johar- DJ/Producer, Ruchi Naithani – Japanese Interpreter and Dhruv Visvanath – Guitarist and Music Creator. “There will be a time when you will be all alone and everyone will be questioning and ridiculing you. But one day, you will see that you have already made a lot of difference”, said Dhruv, who is a very famous among the youth. The session motivated the audience to take a plunge into the fields in which one is interested, rather than just going with the flow.

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The session ended with a high tea session, where the delegates interacted with the speakers.

“I’m very and also relieved at the same time. I thank and appreciate the efforts of all the organising committee members. And I’m especially grateful to all the event partners and speakers guests who brought a spark to this event.”, said Angad Grover, Vice President, Marketing, AIESEC Delhi University.

The event ended with the most famous AIESEC jiving, where they make everyone in the auditorium dance on Bollywood numbers.

 

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