Brass padlocks hang in rows from shop fronts, some small enough for a fingertip, others big enough to guard a warehouse. Aligarh made locks long before independence, and many are still finished by hand. At home, women fold scraps of fine cotton into tiny petals and stitch them onto fabric, the appliqué called phool patti.
Beyond the bazaars, the red-brick halls and white domes of Aligarh Muslim University fill a campus the size of a small town, and evening crowds gather at the temples around Achal Taal. Summers are hot and dry, and winters bring cool days and thick morning fog. A Local Friend reads the bazaar, the kachori counter and the evening mood for you.
