Chawri Bazaar: The world's biggest paper mandi

Chawri Bazaar is a busy road as labourers, cars, rickshaws, scooters and walkers battle for the road during the peak market hours

One of Chawri Bazaar's paper vendors overseeing an outgoing order

Chawri Bazaar can be reached by taking the street near the middle projection of Jama Masjid's western (rear) wall. It is also accessible via the Chawri Bazaar underground station of the Delhi Metro

If the order is a small run; or needed "as of now" then delivery boys who have a customer database in their brain, are the saviours

Chawri Bazaar's streets are abuzz with wedding cards to wallpapers to subtle greetings. The main thing is: All types of paper is available; either in retail or in wholesale

According to urbanolgists, the street is named after a Marathi word chawri, which means meeting place

All grades of paper are available. From coated to uncoated; from metallic to specialty

Stock of Century Paper on a hath thela

Shouldering on: A labourer catering to Delhi's stationery and book market

Every inch is utilised; and paper stock lining the footpath is the norm

Specialty paper is the new paper grade on the block at Chawri Bazaar

Besides being a paper wholesale market, you can buy a brass or copper idol; plus items like jewelry boxes, vases, pots and oil lamps

Paper delivery boy loads a bundle of paper on his head. Chawri Bazaar is a road which has Jama Masjid at one end and Hauz Quazi on the other end of this lane

An operator working on a paper cutting machine

Most of the shop-owners monitor the paper stocks

A workforce of 10,000 services the print and paper industry

A narrow bylane which leads to Nai Sarak which is famous for books and ladies garments

Cycle rickshaws are a very useful mode of transport in the bazaar

Size of the sheets rarely affects the mode of transport

Chawri Bazaar-based paper vendors open their shops deep into the morning

Paper trade show their pious side through their names

The labour-force on daily wages can be seen waiting for work at Chawri Bazaar

With 1,400 paper traders in the area, a constant stream of paper stock is constantly on the move

Waiting for labour to unload the paper stock from the tempo; which is usually done in a record time

Besides trade and commerce, Chawri Bazaar is renowened for eateries like Hira Lal Chaat Waale‘s shop and Jugal Kishore Ramji Lal's chaat shop

Sometimes one comes across two or even three generations of workers who have been operating at Chawri Bazaar

The mighty fine "kraft" of balancing paper

The paper market serves wholesale and retail customers. One such retail customers is arranging his stock on a hand rickshaw after having struck a good bargain

The throb of commerce rarely quietens

JK and Bilt control the lion's share in the coated paper segment

View of the iconic Jama Masjid from the paper market

Lending a helping hand: The loading and unloading is the most onerous part of paper transport

Some of these hand-pulled carts trace their lineage as the paper suppliers to Mughal Emperors Shah Alam II and Aurangzeb

Chawari Bazaar’s paper market is said to be the biggest paper mandi in the world. In 1911, there were only seven paper merchants in this district

Chawri Bazaar caters to 30% of the total Delhi NCR paper market

Special grades, special colours, special jobs

Chawri Bazaar with its commercial potential, is the ultimate market for manufacturers and retailers

A labourer navigates sheets of paper through Chawri Bazaar

Paper trade is not about a shop at the posh South Extension Market or the Connaught Circle. The real action is at Chawri Bazaar