UMAIR SHAH: NUMISMATIST, INSTAGRAMER

 

Shah, 27, is the co-founder of a digital marketing agency, a numismatist, an Instagram influencer, and a self-confessed ‘history nerd'. My profile is deceptive, I work for fashion brands, reads his Instagram bio, rather correctly, given Shah's expansive and exhaustive documentation of history through coins from across eras and monuments forgotten, abandoned, and buried.

Shah says he was all of six years old when his tryst with history started, courtesy of his grandfather who would tuck him in for afternoon naps with historical stories of rulers. When I was that age, I used to know which ruler ruled where. Shah's knowledge in numismatics also took seed at a young age when he was admitted to a coin collectors' club by his father, the only nine-year-old amid senior citizens. The reason I was interested in history was because I was interested in coins. By the age of 14-15, I was reading coins and was an unsaid expert of the coins from the British rule of Bengal. Till the time I was in school, I was exhibiting Mughal coins in Kolkata, Delhi, and Jamshedpur.

And even though his introduction to history began in his hometown Kolkata, it was when he moved to Delhi that things started shaping up. On weekends, I used to travel to historical places in and around Delhi, like Orchha, Agra, Lucknow. And on holidays, I used to take longer trips, like to Goa, Hyderabad, Kashmir, etc. I also took a trip to Uzbekistan. I only travel for the monuments, history or stories. I don't travel to see the mountains or a waterfall, says Shah.

But to feed his love of history, Shah didn't have to travel far and wide. His explorations in Delhi led to him discovering that which found little to no place in collective memory or the city's history. That is, until he decided to document it and share on social media.

Shah's Instagram feed is, for many, a window to Delhi's glorious past. I used to think that people know all of this already. It's only when I started posting these stories on IG that I realised that people have very little idea of Delhi's history.

 
Umair Shah with attendees of his heritage walk

Shah, who is now known for his heritage walks in Delhi NCR, did his first walk in Mehrauli Archaeological Park to raise funds for those affected by the floods in Odisha in 2019. It was a huge hit, says Shah. Even people who have been brought up in Delhi and have lived here don't know that Mehrauli Archaeological park is bigger than the Qutub Minar Complex and it has so many interesting monuments. My walks are to make people fall in love with Delhi.

But Shah's love for history doesn't cloud the realities of the present. Before our walks in Old Delhi, I always tell people that when you are coming here, don't romanticise it, because for the people who live there, it is ghettoized. They don't get the basic amenities of water and electricity half the time.

To read the complete article, see:
Umair Shah wants you to fall in love with Delhi's history: ‘My focus is on the stories' (https://indianexpress.com/article/lifestyle/art-and-culture/umair-shah-wants-you-to-fall-in-love-with-delhis-history-7938364/)

	NBS (coinbooks.org) Web