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Over an extended period, coercive phone calls continued. Initially, allegedly from an ex-law enforcement official and an ex-military commander, subsequently from law enforcement directly. Ultimately, one resident asserts he was ordered to the police station and warned explicitly: remain silent or experience severe repercussions.

The leather artisan is part of a group fighting a multimillion-dollar redevelopment plan where one of India's largest slums – one of India’s largest and most storied slums – is scheduled to be razed and transformed by a corporate giant.

"The distinctive community of this area is exceptional in the world," states Shaikh. "But the plan aims to eradicate our social fabric and prevent our protests."

Contrasting Realities

The narrow alleys of this community sit in stark contrast to the high-rise structures and Bollywood penthouses that dominate the area. Homes are assembled randomly and typically missing basic amenities, unregulated industries produce dangerous fumes and the environment is filled with the overpowering odor of open sewers.

For certain residents, the vision of a renewed Dharavi into a glistening neighborhood of high-end towers, organized recreational areas, modern retail complexes and residences with two toilets is a hopeful vision realized.

"We don't have adequate medical facilities, proper streets or water management and there are no spaces for children to play," states A Selvin Nadar, in his fifties, who migrated from his home state in the early eighties. "The single option is to clear the area and build us new homes."

Local Protest

However, some, such as Shaikh, are resisting the plan.

Everyone acknowledges that the slum, historically ignored as informal housing, is in stark need investment and development. Yet they fear that this plan – lacking public consultation – could potentially convert valuable urban land into a luxury development, evicting the marginalized, immigrant populations who have lived there since the late 1800s.

This involved these marginalized, relocated individuals who built up the vacant wetlands into a widely studied marvel of local enterprise and business activity, whose economic value is valued at between $1m and a substantial sum annually, making it among the globe's biggest unofficial markets.

Displacement Concerns

Of the roughly a million inhabitants living in the crowded sprawling neighborhood, less than 50% will be qualified for replacement housing in the development, which is expected to take an extended timeframe to complete. Others will be transferred to barren areas and saline fields on the remote edges of the city, risking fragment a long-established community. Some will receive no housing at all.

People eligible to remain in the neighborhood will be provided units in multi-story structures, a major break from the natural, shared lifestyle of dwelling and laboring that has sustained Dharavi for so long.

Commercial activities from garment work to clay work and waste processing are projected to reduce in scale and be moved to a specific "commercial zone" separated from residential areas.

Existential Threat

For those such as Shaikh, a craftsman and third generation resident to reside in Dharavi, the redevelopment presents an existential threat. His rickety, three-floor facility makes apparel – tailored coats, suede trenches, fashionable garments – sold in luxury boutiques in south Mumbai and internationally.

Relatives lives in the accommodations underneath and employees and tailors – laborers from other states – reside in the same building, permitting him to afford their labour. Away from Dharavi's enclave, Mumbai rents are often tenfold more expensive for a single room.

Pressure and Coercion

At the administrative buildings close by, a conceptual model of the Dharavi project depicts a very different perspective. Slickly dressed residents gather on two-wheelers and electric vehicles, purchasing western-style bread and pastries and socializing on an outdoor area outside a coffee shop and dessert parlor. This depicts a stark contrast from the inexpensive idli sambar breakfast and budget beverage that supports local residents.

"This isn't improvement for our community," explains the protester. "It's an enormous land development that will render it impossible for our community to continue."

There is also skepticism of the business conglomerate. Managed by a powerful tycoon – one of India's most powerful and a close ally of the government head – the business group has faced accusations of favoritism and questionable practices, which it disputes.

Although administrative bodies describes it as a partnership, the corporation invested $950m for its controlling interest. Legal proceedings claiming that the initiative was questionably assigned to the developer is under review in India's supreme court.

Sustained Harassment

From when they initiated to publicly resist the redevelopment, Shaikh and other residents state they have been experienced a long-running campaign of coercion and warning – including messages, clear intimidation and insinuations that speaking against the initiative was equivalent to anti-national sentiment – by individuals they assert work for the corporate group.

Part of the group accused of delivering warnings is {a retired police officer|a former law enforcement official|an ex-c