At this South Delhi cafe, Delhiites come for ‘cleaner air’, warm soup, and some old rock

This is Planterie in Panchsheel Park, a recreational refuge in the national capital being discovered by Delhiites looking for a breath of air that doesn’t feel like a fight.

Over the past month, clips of this lush indoor cafe began circulating on Instagram reels and AQI discussion threads. (Express photo by Saman Husain)

Over the past month, clips of this lush indoor cafe began circulating on Instagram reels and AQI discussion threads. Visitors posted videos of monitors showing comparatively lower particulate levels inside; others simply filmed themselves reading, eating, or working in this green space.

For 34-year-old IT professional Raj Chauhan, the place has become part of his routine. “I come from West Delhi and I catch the Metro everyday — the obvious reason is that it is very pretty… If I’m to spend a lot of money, then I might as well come here,” he says, while savouring his momo soup.

Last year, around this time, Chauhan was diagnosed with chronic bronchitis. “I felt pain and tightness in my chest… Thankfully, I had the money to get the best treatment possible… the doctor gave me medicine and an inhaler but I was still very sensitive to pollution,” he said, taking out a mask from his bag.

“I’ve become a mask expert since then. N99 is what works, it blocks all particulate matter and toxins, but it is really not possible for one to wear a mask at all times.”

He says green spaces like this help him through the days when Delhi’s air feels unforgiving. “… I don’t plan on staying in the city anymore, if things don’t work out I’ll shift elsewhere else… But till then, this helps.”

The cafe also runs workshops on terrarium-making, gardening basics, and has DIY pot-painting sessions. (Express photo by Saman Husain)

The cafe’s co-founder, Farial Sabrina, 50, says she has grown up in green spaces: first in a village on the outskirts of Dhaka, then in numerous metropolitan cities where balconies shrank and indoor plants became decor rather than habit. “… Most people in Delhi live in apartments. Cities don’t have many options, so how do we make our lives better?”

The cafe started as a small store in Aurobindo Place  — part shop, part experiment. “We were testing it. People began finding us. Three and a half years later, we needed a bigger space. That’s how we moved to Panchsheel Park,” she says.

The cafe also sells plants and runs workshops on terrarium-making, gardening basics, and has DIY pot-painting sessions. “People come because they want to experience greenery, learn how to grow plants and for the low AQI…,” adds Sabrina.

Social media, she says, has partly contributed to their footfall. “We don’t do a lot of marketing. People talk about us on reels. Everyone on social media has been talking about AQI these days, so people come here looking for a better breathing experience.”

In one corner, 32-year-old Himank Sharma, the co-founder who joined Sabrina after returning from the US, sips tea.

It was last year that Sharma, who was working in the US at the time and was looking to move back to India, was introduced to Sabrina by a client.

On moving back to India, he says the initial month was tough because he started facing breathing difficulties. “… Over time, it became easier, possibly because I was fortunate I was working out of Planterie, so I’m only exposed to bad air when I am travelling,” he adds.

Their food philosophy, Sabrina explains, works like their plants. “Small, healthy and freshly made meals. Light and soulful — when you take a bite you should feel happy inside.”

Summer means mango salad; winter means warm broccoli soup and strawberry desserts. “There’s a reason certain things grow during certain seasons,” she says.

Since opening four years ago, the cafe’s audience has widened beyond South Delhi. “People come from West and North Delhi, Noida, Gurgaon, even Greater Noida… and from other parts of the country: Rajasthan, Jammu, Odisha, Pune because they want to see what we’re doing and try something similar,” says Sabrina.