India, Jan. 21 -- How did you come to research and write this interesting monograph on the history and culture of Old Delhi's Daryaganj Sunday Book Market?

My research on the Daryaganj Sunday Book Market began with a personal fascination that evolved into a scholarly pursuit. During my MPhil research on love letter writing manuals in Old Delhi, I encountered the vibrant yet overlooked world of informal book markets. This curiosity deepened during my PhD at SOAS, where I focused on the Daryaganj Sunday Book Bazaar. Initially, I sought to understand how such markets functioned within informal economies. Over time, I realised they were also spaces of storytelling, serendipity, and community.

Studying this market required a combination of a...