Many books have been written on the fascinating and chequered history of the city of Delhi. Few, however, have the breadth and scope of K.A. Nizami's book, first published in Urdu in 1972. It captures in rich detail the cultural, social, economic and spiritual fabric of the city over seven centuries, using original literary, travel, biographical, hagiographical and administrative accounts in Persian, Hindavi and Urdu.
Despite the political turbulence during this long stretch of time spanning the Sultanate and Mughal periods, culturally the city retained its basic composite and tolerant character-a tolerance and amity bred in the main in the city's many Sufi khaneqas. And for this reason, economic and political circumstances notwithstanding, culturally and socially the city continued to bloom. The poetry of Amir Khusrau and Ghalib are high points in the city's cultural and literary efflorescence and the book devotes considerable space to them.