Delhiites' 50-year love affair with 'The Bookshop' ends as store pulls down shutters

New Delhi: Eyes were moist and hands jittery as bibliophiles riffled through the pages of a plethora of books housed at the capital's iconic 'The Bookshop', albeit for one last time on Monday.

The social media post by Rachna Singh, daughter of the store's founder K D Singh, on Sunday announcing the closure of 'The Bookshop', finally put an end to the over 50-year love affair of Delhiites with the quaint, little bookstore in Jor Bagh.

"It is with sadness that I would like to announce that on 31 October 2023, The Book Shop will down its shutters — and we will dissolve the partnership that owns it... As it is said, to everything, there is a season, The Book Shop, too, has had its season, now it’s time to move on (sic)," read the post on Facebook with a photograph of the late K D Singh and his wife Nini Singh.

Many, including the likes of novelist Shobhaa De and Australian author John Zubrzycki, filled the comment section, recalling their memories of the landmark Delhi address '13/7 Jor Bagh Market' and expressing regret at the decision to pull down the shop's shutters.

"Was always my first stop in Delhi and fondly remembered as my neighbourhood bookshop when I lived in Jor Bagh. Could never leave without buying something and having a chat with KD and Nini. Will miss it dearly," wrote Zubrzycki, author of the bestseller Jadoowallahs, Jugglers and Jinns and The House of Jaipur.

KD and his wife Nini together opened The Bookshop in 1970, and the rest is history of them hosting the who's who of the capital, including novelists, bureaucrats, politicians and film stars.

The couple had one more store in Khan Market, which was later shut down in 2006 due to financial constraints. After Singh's death in 2014, his family, including his wife Nini, remained involved with the Jor Bagh store.

Not for nothing, the bookstore on a busy Monday afternoon saw hundreds of book lovers making a final pilgrimage to the place which made them fall in love with the written word.

It was a sight unlike any as bibliophiles jostled their way to endless stacks and shelves of books and came out with bundles of books and perhaps one last piece of memory from the famed bookstore once described by the New York Times as 'the cosiest bookshop in the country'.

"I feel terrible. I have been coming to this store since its inception. It is as if they are taking a part of me away from me. Books without my beloved 'The Bookshop' would no more mean the same to me," said a lady in her late 80s to another visitor as Sohan Singh, the loyal doorman of the bookstore since 1999, overhearing the conversation sobbed uncontrollably.

But as they say every end has a new beginning, the closing of The Bookshop has paved the way for the new swanky and spacious 'The Bookshop Inc' in the nearby Lodhi Market.

The new entity, run by one of the former partners of The Bookshop Sonal Narain and staff members Mahika Chaturvedi and Sohan Singh, promises to have an impeccable collection of books in the offing for the avid fans of literature in the capital.

Publishing houses, such as the likes of Penguin Random House India (PRHI), who are ardent admirers of K D Singh's The Bookshop, are hopeful of the success of the new bookstore as well.

"While the original store is closing, we must celebrate the fact that another one is coming up not so far from Jor Bagh, and I am sure the readers and followers of The Bookshop will continue to flock to the new place which looks very promising for the readers' community," said Nandan Jha, executive VP (product, sales and business development) of Penguin Random House India.