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For months, coercive messages recurred. Originally, supposedly from an ex-law enforcement official and a retired army general, subsequently from law enforcement directly. Ultimately, Mohammad Khurshid Shaikh asserts he was ordered to the local precinct and warned explicitly: keep quiet or face serious consequences.

This third-generation resident is one of many fighting a high-value project where one of India's largest slums – an iconic Mumbai neighborhood – will be razed and redeveloped by a multinational conglomerate.

"The unique ecosystem of Dharavi is unparalleled in the planet," states Shaikh. "Yet the plan aims to dismantle our way of life and silence our voices."

Dual Worlds

The dank gullies of the slum present a dramatic difference to the towering buildings and luxury apartments that loom over the area. Homes are constructed informally and frequently without proper sanitation, informal businesses emit toxic smoke and the atmosphere is permeated by the unpleasant stench of open sewers.

To some, the vision of a renewed Dharavi into a modern district of premium apartments, well-maintained green spaces, contemporary malls and homes with multiple bathrooms is an aspirational dream realized.

"We don't have adequate medical facilities, roads or drainage and there's nowhere for youth to recreate," explains a chai seller, 56, who migrated from southern India in that period. "The only way is to tear it all down and provide modern residences."

Community Resistance

But others, such as the leather artisan, are fighting against the redevelopment.

All recognize that the slum, historically ignored as informal housing, is urgently needing economic input and modernization. However they fear that this initiative – without public consultation – might turn premium city property into a playground for the rich, forcing out the marginalized, working-class residents who have resided there since the late 1800s.

These were these shunned, migrant workers who developed the empty marshland into a frequently examined example of local enterprise and business activity, whose production is valued at between a significant amount and a substantial sum per year, making it one of the world's largest unregulated sectors.

Resettlement Issues

Of the roughly one million people living in the dense sprawling neighborhood, fewer than half will be qualified for replacement housing in the project, which is expected to take seven years to complete. The remainder will be moved to barren areas and saline fields on the remote edges of Mumbai, threatening to break up a long-established community. A portion will be denied housing at all.

Those allowed to continue living in the area will be given flats in high-rise buildings, a major break from the evolved, communal way of living and working that has maintained this area for generations.

Commercial activities from tailoring to pottery and recycling are likely to decrease in quantity and be relocated to an allocated "commercial zone" far from homes.

Existential Threat

In the case of Shaikh, a leather artisan and multi-generational of his family to live in Dharavi, the redevelopment presents an existential threat. His makeshift, multi-level operation makes apparel – sharp blazers, suede trenches, decorated jackets – distributed in luxury boutiques in upscale neighborhoods and abroad.

His family lives in the accommodations downstairs and his workers and sewers – migrants from different regions – also sleep on-site, allowing him to sustain operations. Beyond the slum, accommodation prices are typically 10 times more expensive for a single room.

Harassment and Intimidation

Within the administrative buildings in the vicinity, a visual representation of the Dharavi project shows a very different perspective. Well-groomed inhabitants gather on cycles and e-vehicles, purchasing continental bread and croissants and enlisting beverages on an outdoor area outside Dharavi Cafe and treat station. This represents a complete departure from the inexpensive idli sambar first meal and 5-rupee chai that sustains local residents.

"This isn't progress for us," explains Shaikh. "This constitutes a massive land development that will price people out for our community to continue."

Additionally, there exists distrust of the development company. Headed by a powerful tycoon – a leading figure and a close ally of the national leader – the corporation has faced accusations of favoritism and ethical concerns, which it rejects.

Even as local authorities calls it a joint project, the corporation contributed a significant amount for its 80% stake. Legal proceedings stating that the redevelopment was improperly granted to the corporation is being considered in the nation's highest judicial body.

Continued Intimidation

Since they began to vocally oppose the project, protesters and community members assert they have been subjected to an extended period of pressure and threats – comprising phone calls, explicit warnings and implications that criticizing the project was tantamount to opposing national interests – by individuals they claim are associated with the developer.

Among those alleged to have making intimidations is {a retired police officer|a former law enforcement official|an ex-c