Friends gather around the edge of an akhara in the early evening, trading greetings and advice while two pehlwans circle each other in the soft earth. Later the same group regroups at a tikka grill on the GT Road, where a shared plate of meat is how most news travels in this wrestling town.
Beyond the grills, the walled old city keeps Shahi Bazaar, Brandreth Gate and Sheranwala Bagh, whose Sikh-era pavilion still shows painted peacocks. Summers are long and very hot, monsoon rain arrives in July and August, and winters turn pleasantly cool. A Local Friend walks beside you through the lanes, matching your steps instead of racing ahead to the next sight.
