"I think it was the sheer size of this large Indian city, and then the otherness of the visible structure and society compared to here that initially blew my mind,’ says Barbara Yelin, recalling her stay in New Delhi, a city she travelled to for a week in late 2012 at the invitation of the Goethe-Institut. ‘It was only later that I started to pay attention to details, to perceive passers-by and the people I had met as individuals. Colours and smells are unimaginably intense, as described in every guidebook."
She has drawn for the Frankfurter Rundschau and the Tagesspiegel, publishes books and conducts workshops all over the world. Barbara Yelin is one of the best German-language comic artists.
Tuk Tuk, auto rickshaw or just rickshaw: The green-and-yellow runabouts are indispensable parts of Delhi's cityscape. Even if the pressure of the cheap Uber competition is getting bigger, the chugging manoeuvrable Kleintaxis brave. Officially equipped with taximeters, the price is usually negotiated individually with the driver. Cars are steered (speak Otto) almost exclusively by men. Incidentally, Sunita Chaudhary became known as the first female driver among about 60,000 male colleagues in Delhi.
Stress-free, safe, clean: The Delhi Metro is the convenient alternative to get quickly and cheaply from A to B in the mega-city. The well-developed route network opens up the city in a pleasant way. For women there is an extra compartment. The stations are well organized, the trains are air conditioned.
Full, full, full: The loading of mopeds, bicycles, trailers, carts and other companions often sounds crazy in Delhi. Everything is stacked, bound, laced, lied: gas bottles, milk bottles, fruits and vegetables, animals, household goods - there is nothing that is not wobbled through the streets. Maximum weights or statutory dimensions? Is not there apparently...
Crispy on the outside, soft on the inside, sticky syrup comes out with every bite: Jalebi are deep-fried crinkles, dipped in warm sugar syrup, which is usually flavored with cardamom or saffron. Really Indian, the oily, super-sweet delicacy is not: It was introduced by Persians in 1450.
Jonas Engelmann on Delhi Sketch-Book
Some of the drawings give one the impression of the artist trying to organise her amazement, confusion and exasperation, the chaos of a street scene continuing in the form of cables and washing lines over the heads of countless people."
