New Delhi: When people hear the name GB Road, their minds often turn to the tales of a forbidden street. Few realise that beneath the name lies one of Delhi’s oldest hardware markets. But for decades, it has been known more as the city’s largest red-light area than as a commercial hub.

Hundreds of women still live here in rooms above the shops that line the street. The narrow stairways lead to old quarters where women sell their bodies to earn a living.

But centuries ago, the same road had a very different story. During the Mughal era, GB Road was home to women who had nowhere else to go. Many were said to have once served in the royal harem of Emperor Shah Jahan. When their youth faded or they fell out of favour, they were sent away and found shelter along this street. It became a refuge for women cast out from royal life.

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Over time, smaller red-light areas emerged across Delhi, scattered through old neighbourhoods. Later, during British rule, officials decided to move all such activities to one place – GB Road. From that point on, the street’s image changed forever. It became the name people whispered about, a symbol of secrecy and sin hidden behind the glow of market lights.

Few know what GB actually stands for. The full name is Garstin Bastion Road, though it is officially known today as Shraddhanand Marg. The road lies close to the New Delhi Railway Station, stretching between Ajmeri Gate and Lahori Gate. It connects to Chandni Chowk and Chawri Bazaar, forming one of the busiest commercial stretches in Old Delhi.

At street level, the area hums with the noise of traders selling hardware and electrical goods. But a few steps above, in the shadowed upper floors, lies another world, one that has endured through empires, reforms and modernity.

Even today, GB Road remains a reminder of how Delhi’s oldest lanes carry centuries of forgotten lives – stories of power, loss and survival hidden within their walls.