Quest is a project conducted by The Indian Express in schools in and around Delhi. It covers more than 50 schools in Delhi and NCR.

Quest aims at stirring awareness and opinions. Today, when all that children see are shopping malls and cineplexes, we at The Indian Express want to show a completely different picture of this city to them. Delhi has changed beyond nostalgia and recognition since Independence. How many of these kids know of the ‘Seven Cities’ of Delhi or the stories of the pigeon fliers of Old Delhi? The idea behind such an activity is to create awareness about the various structures and monuments that the students do not know about. This is a specially designed programme, which will help the students appreciate the rich culture and background of this city. In association with INTACH and ASI, this is a small effort on our behalf to depict a phase of our national life and the decay of a whole culture, a particular mode of thought and living. The visit is followed by the students sending in articles, pictures, poems, paintings, and collages to express their experiences about the heritage walk.

We invite schools to be a part of this Express Group initiative.

Our glorious past
A journey to our glorious past, an era relived, the magnificent past recreated- it was all this and much more when we, the students of Shah International School, Paschim Vihar went for the heritage walk organized by The Indian Express. We visited Safdarjung’s Tomb on the morning of August 8. It was drizzling but that did not dampen our enthusiasm. This tomb was built by Nawab Shujauddaula to commemorate the memory of his father Mirza Mudim Abul Manzur Khan, entitled Safdarjung, who was the Governor of Oudh. He was the prime minister of Muhammed Shah. The tomb, with its ornately decorated gateway, dome and gardens around it, was indeed a treat for the eyes. The mausoleum is built on the plans of Humayun’s Tomb with red sand stone and buff stone surrounded by water channels and gardens. There are two graves there, one of Safdarjung and the other presumably his wife's. We learned a lot about many things we didn’t know of. Mughal architecture was in front of us in all its magnificence. We spent around two hours learning about historical buildings in and around Delhi. Our walk was limited to one place and it gave us enough time to learn more about that place. The youth of today has bid adieu to the bygone era and has conveniently forgotten our heritage and culture. This heritage walk was an eye opener in the true sense.
—Anchal Girotra, X

An era relived
A visit to the ancient ruins
A journey down the memory lane
One never envisaged
What was in store, what one would see
It was as plain as it could be
The splendor, the serenity
History recreated, an era relived
The fallen bricks, the crumbling arch
All had a story to tell
How great monarchs fell
The glory, the grandeur
The majesty and the magnificence
Our heritage is our pride, save it
Our culture it depicts, preserve it.
- Anchal Girotra , X

The heritage walk
India has a proud past and the present generation should be aware of it. The heritage walk organised by The Indian Express makes the youth conscious of their role in preserving the past. It is truly said that those who fail to understand the past are condemned to repeat its errors. But that is not the only reason why we should preserve our monuments. Stories and oral traditions from the past play an important role in our culture. In India, invasions and migrations have led to the mixture of so many cultures, resulting in different architectural styles, which other countries may not be able to boast of. This is one attraction for the tourists. Scribbling and spoiling of the monuments by youngsters should be stopped and this would happen only if they know the real worth of these buildings. This heritage walk had a lot to teach us and I hope we get opportunities to visit other monuments as well. We, for the first time, understood what we are really looking at and realised that every monument has a story to tell. Mughal architecture, with its magnificence, opened before us the forgotten tales of Muhammed Shah and his able minister, Safdarjung. We cannot but help give credit to this initiative taken by The Indian Express to take youngsters out for heritage walks, which truly reveal things young India is not aware of. It has ventured into an area which others have not thought of.
—Hiteshi Malhotra, XII

An enriching experience
When I heard that we were going to visit Safdarjung's Tomb, it did not strike me as something that would change my perspective altogether. The Indian Express arranged a heritage walk for the students of our school and I joined in because it was a pleasant respite from studies. We reached the tomb at 8.30 am. Very punctual, our co-coordinator Ms Priyanka and our guides for the day Ms Aradhana and Ms Kanika were there ready to take us to a world hitherto unknown to us. India is blessed with many great monuments, which are rich in Indian architecture and sculpture. Safdarjung’s Tomb is rich in Persian architecture like the other monuments built under Mughal rule. It is designed in such a way that the entire area of the tomb is divided into different squares with water channels flowing through the garden. On entering the first floor you get to see the tomb divided into different chambers with sculptures on the roof, beautiful windows and a wide open space for entering and exiting. From the front we can see the garden divided into squares and the big fountain. On the other three sides there are small cottages. The main monument is surrounded by four tall chambers known as minars. The dead bodies of Safdarjung and his wife are buried under the tomb. The architecture of Safdarjung's Tomb is similar to the Humayun’s Tomb, which was also built during Mughal rule. It was a very enriching and exciting experience for all of us and we look forward to another walk soon.
—Bhavna Grover, X

An educational trip
The word trip has been associated with visits to a factory, a museum or a movie hall where we go just with the intention of spending some time. The heritage walk is a novel idea introduced by The Indian Express and it was a good opportunity for us to become aware of our past. We went for a visit to Safdarjung’s Tomb on August 8. We had Ms Aradhana with us, who knew everything about the place and this gave a new dimension to the place. The first thing that struck me was the immense love and regard that the people of that period had, which made them build such magnificent tombs in memory of their fathers and mothers. The tomb speaks volumes about the Mughal architecture and the kind of talent and imagination that existed in the past. The tomb is surrounded by beautiful gardens built with the belief that after death the soul goes to paradise. They tried to make the burial place resemble paradise. The responsibility of preserving these monuments lies on the shoulders of today’s youth. We have gone a long way in Science and technology. At the same time, it is important that children follow the traditional Indian values of truth, tolerance and respect for these historical monuments, so as to preserve the heritage of our country.
—Prerna Gupta, X

History, here and now
Today India seems to have achieved success in various walks of life, but Indians seldom seem to appreciate their heritage. The credit goes to The Indian Express for taking the initiative to sensitise students on this issue by organising a visit to various monuments. The golden opportunity was given to the students of Shah International school to visit the historical monument Safdarjung’s Tomb. The visit on August 8 was unforgettable as it changed our viewpoint about the glorious past. We were divided into groups and each group was accompanied by guides who were well versed in the history of the tomb. We were told about the historical importance of the palace and the details about it. The beauty of the monument even after 250 years was admirable. The details that must have gone into the construction of such a tomb made me think about the talent that was there years back without the exposure that we have today. The tomb, with its garden and architectural magnificence touched, our hearts. The square central mausoleum is surrounded by eight rooms all around. Safdarjung’s Tomb was erected roughly on the pattern of Humayun’s Tomb and represents the last phase of Mughal architecture. The dome of the tomb rises from a sixteen-sided base. On either side of the tomb are beautiful pavilions known as pearl palace, the sylvan palace and “Badshah pasand”. We carried a beautiful memory of the monument back home, but more than that a sense of pride in being a citizen of the country with such a rich past.
—Saloni Gupta,X