Dehradun, July 27 -- A friend with whom I was having coffee in a cafe recently remarked as to how "laid back Dehradun has become Cafe Dehradun". For anyone who knew the valley in its quieter decades, the transformation is undeniable. Today, a new cafe springs up on every street, around every residential bend, and at every commercial intersection.

Having travelled extensively, I have always been fascinated by how a city's soul is mirrored in its coffee spaces. In Europe, the birthplace of modern cafe culture, these spaces define public life. Vienna's grand coffee houses like Cafe Central are recognised by UNESCO as "Intangible Cultural Heritage"- democratic living rooms where a single cup lets you sit for hours. Rome offers the opposite: ...