India, March 13 -- This must be the city's most beautiful barbershop, although it has no name. Its stone portal is flanked by a trio of graceful arches, and stepping through them feels less like entering a place for a quick shave and more like walking into a monument meant for admiration.

Gali Dharampura, as this lane is informally known, is among the most picturesque streets of Old Delhi. The lane feels curated, as though shaped by an aesthete determined to keep out the embarrassing aspects of the Walled City. It is oddly orderly, free from the usual intrusions of Old Delhi chaos-the noise, crowds, tangles of wires, and impossible traffic of bikes and rickshaws. Walking here can feel like moving through a film set designed to mimic the ...