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Across several weeks, intimidating communications continued. At first, supposedly from a former police officer and a retired army general, subsequently from the police themselves. Ultimately, a local artisan states he was ordered to the police station and instructed bluntly: stop speaking out or experience severe repercussions.

The leather artisan is one of many opposing a multimillion-dollar initiative where one of India's largest slums – a massive informal community with rich history – will be bulldozed and transformed by a multinational conglomerate.

"The unique ecosystem of the slum is unparalleled in the world," says the resident. "But their intention is to destroy our way of life and stop us speaking out."

Opposing Environments

The narrow alleys of Dharavi sit in stark contrast to the soaring skyscrapers and Bollywood penthouses that loom over the neighborhood. Dwellings are assembled randomly and typically missing basic amenities, informal businesses produce dangerous fumes and the atmosphere is permeated by the overpowering odor of exposed drainage.

To some, the vision of the slum's redevelopment into a glistening neighborhood of high-end towers, well-maintained green spaces, modern retail complexes and homes with two toilets is an aspirational dream come true.

"We lack adequate medical facilities, proper streets or drainage and we have no places for kids to enjoy," states a tea vendor, 56, who migrated from his home state in 1982. "The only way is to clear the area and build us new homes."

Local Protest

Yet certain residents, like Shaikh, are opposing the project.

Everyone acknowledges that the slum, historically ignored as an illegal encroachment, is desperately requiring economic input and modernization. However they worry that this project – without resident participation – could potentially convert a piece of prime Mumbai real estate into a luxury development, forcing out the lower-caste, immigrant populations who have been there since the nineteenth century.

It was these excluded, displaced people who established the vacant wetlands into a widely studied marvel of community resilience and business activity, whose economic value is valued at between $1m and $2m annually, making it one of the world's largest informal economies.

Relocation Worries

Among approximately a million people living in the dense sprawling neighborhood, fewer than half will be able for new homes in the redevelopment, which is estimated to take an extended timeframe to finish. The remainder will be moved to undeveloped zones and saline fields on the remote edges of Mumbai, threatening to divide a long-established neighborhood. A portion will be denied homes at all.

Those allowed to remain in the area will be given units in multi-story structures, a substantial change from the natural, collective approach of dwelling and laboring that has sustained the community for so long.

Industries from garment work to ceramic crafts and recycling are projected to reduce in scale and be relocated to a specific "commercial zone" far from residential areas.

Livelihood Crisis

For residents like this protester, a leather artisan and multi-generational inhabitant to call home this community, the plan presents a fundamental risk. His informal, three-floor workshop produces garments – tailored coats, premium outerwear, studded bomber jackets – marketed in premium stores in the city's affluent areas and internationally.

Household members dwells in the spaces underneath and employees and sewers – workers from other states – reside on-site, permitting him to sustain operations. Outside this community, housing costs are often significantly more expensive for minimal space.

Harassment and Intimidation

Within the government offices close by, a visual representation of the Dharavi project shows a contrasting perspective. Well-groomed inhabitants mill about on two-wheelers and electric vehicles, acquiring western-style baked goods and breakfast items and enlisting beverages on a terrace near a coffee shop and dessert parlor. This represents a complete departure from the inexpensive idli sambar breakfast and 5-rupee chai that maintains the neighborhood.

"This represents no improvement for residents," states the artisan. "It's a massive real estate deal that will price people out for residents to remain."

Furthermore, there's concern of the business conglomerate. Headed by an influential industrialist – among the country's wealthiest and an associate of the government head – the corporation has faced accusations of crony capitalism and ethical concerns, which it denies.

Although the state government describes it as a partnership, the corporation invested a significant amount for its 80% stake. A case stating that the redevelopment was improperly granted to the business group is being considered in India's supreme court.

Ongoing Pressure

Since they began to publicly resist the project, Shaikh and other residents assert they have been experienced a long-running campaign of pressure and threats – including messages, clear intimidation and suggestions that criticizing the initiative was comparable with speaking against the country – by individuals they claim are associated with the corporate group.

Included in these suspected of making intimidations is {a retired police officer|a former law enforcement official|an ex-c