Our city is home for us all. And the monkeys. The rhesus macaque, one of the most common species in northern India, is a familiar sight in Delhi — perched on trees, trotting along streets, or peering into balconies.
Often dismissed as a nuisance, these monkeys, primatologist Taniya Gill says, are just deeply misunderstood. “No one likes these macaques, but they’re completely misunderstood,” they say. An anthropology graduate with a PhD on the behaviour of Delhi’s rhesus macaques, Gill led the group through the Kamla Nehru Ridge recently, decoding the behaviour of the city’s simian residents.
The Bandar Walk, organised by There Is No Earth B, a collective with over 13000 volunteers across the country focused on climate action and sustainability, was the first of its kind for the group, interested in expanding their nature experiences beyond bird and butterfly trails. Gill, who began the monkey walks earlier this year, says these are meant to be educational, raising awareness about coexistence. “The real issue is that people are scared of monkeys, and if I just tell them they shouldn’t be, it doesn’t help,” Gill tells TMS.
Aditya Shukla and Alia, postgraduate students from Jamia Millia Islamia, arrived early out of curiosity. The duo who has often been on various heritage and nature walks across the city says that they have never been on a Bandar Walk. “Our shared fascination for monkeys as a meme and cultural reference brought us here,” they say. “I was fascinated to learn about their social structures — there is even evidence of queer relationships among them,” adds Shukla.
Macaque manual
At the start, Gill shared their Monkey Dictionary zine, with notes on how to observe and interact with monkeys respectfully. One key point: avoid direct eye contact. “While looking at them, we should stand sideways and maintain distance, because direct eye contact signals aggression,” they explain. For the organisers too, the walk was more about changing mindsets than about spotting monkeys. “We see them every day, but most of us are scared of them. I personally was very scared and never knew how to interact,” says Bhawna Tanwar, director of There Is No Earth B.
As we moved along the shaded paths of the Ridge, we began spotting monkeys — some in pairs, others in groups or sometimes a baby and a mother — picking out lice and cleaning one another. Gill explained that grooming is much more than hygiene. “It’s a very important social behaviour. Grooming for them is like gossiping for us. It’s how they bond and maintain their social fabric,” they say.
The walk coincided with the start of their mating season, which lasts from November to February. Our group spotted various primates with their faces and hindquarters flushed red and some males bore scratches and fresh wounds from territorial fights. “It’s part of their social behaviour. Mating periods are full of competition as they are high inter-individual competition,” Gill says. “But sometimes urban macaques have these wounds due to accidents as well.”
Like Tanwar, many participants joined out of curiosity, wanting to learn how to coexist. “I’ve always been very scared of monkeys,” admits Robin Sharma, a copywriter. “But now that I understand their behaviour, I’m more comfortable walking around them.” He laughs, recalling childhood memories: “They’re very mischievous! I remember them raiding kitchens and stealing food.”
Changing habitats
Over time, rhesus macaques have largely moved away from the wild, adapting instead to urban and semi-urban environments near temples and villages. This shift has also altered their diet and behaviour. Gill estimates that less than 20% of their diet now comes from natural vegetation. Instead, they thrive on what people feed them.
“They’re used to human food. It’s easier to get, and is higher in calories,” says Gill. They also note that this could lead to physiological effects among monkeys — such as contracting diseases or reduced lifespans — which continue to remain unknown due to the lack of simian research.
“Monkeys are dismissed as pests, yet they play an essential ecological role, like seed dispersal. They’re an integral part of urban biodiversity,” says Gill. In Delhi, they’re seen across Asola Bhatti Wildlife Sanctuary, Deer Park, and the Ridge, often wandering into South and Lutyens’ Delhi.
Yet despite being among the city’s most visible residents, many aspects of rhesus macaques’ behaviour remain surprisingly under-studied. “Because they’re so common, they’re classified as a species of ‘least concern’,” Gill notes. "Species like Rhesus macaques are not considered charismatic because they are so abundant and these projects don't receive a lot of funding. Endangered species get most of the attention.”
That “problem” has surfaced across India. In states like Himachal and Uttarakhand, macaques raiding farms have led to major economic losses. In 2016, they were even declared ‘vermin’ in Himachal, allowing for culling. In Delhi, authorities have spent heavily on sterilisation drives — without much scientific groundwork. “Sterilisation has been done randomly,” Gill explains. “To actually control a population, you’d need to sterilise 80% — impossible without tracking individuals.”
“Before today, I was scared of monkeys,” says Ekta, a postgraduate student and team member of the collective. Living in South Delhi, she often encounters them near her home. “I’m not scared anymore. We have to co-exist. The earth isn’t meant to be owned, it’s meant to be shared. Understanding monkeys — their behaviour, their habitat — helps us learn how to live alongside them, and to see the city as something we all belong to.”
This article is written by Adithi Reena Ajith