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For months, coercive communications persisted. Initially, allegedly from a retired cop and an ex-military commander, and then from the authorities. Ultimately, one resident states he was called to law enforcement headquarters and instructed bluntly: stop speaking out or face serious consequences.

Shaikh is one of many resisting a high-value project where one of India's largest slums – a massive informal community with rich history – is scheduled to be razed and modernized by a corporate giant.

"The culture of this area is exceptional in the world," says the resident. "Yet the plan aims to dismantle our social fabric and prevent our protests."

Dual Worlds

The cramped lanes of the slum present a dramatic difference to the soaring skyscrapers and luxury apartments that loom over the area. Dwellings are constructed informally and often missing basic amenities, small-scale operations emit toxic smoke and the air is filled with the unpleasant stench of exposed drainage.

To some, the promise of Dharavi transformed into a glistening neighborhood of premium apartments, neat parks, contemporary malls and apartments with proper sanitation is an aspirational dream achieved.

"There's no proper healthcare, paved pathways or drainage and we have no places for children to play," explains a chai seller, 56, who moved from his home state in 1982. "The single option is to clear the area and provide modern residences."

Resident Opposition

Yet certain residents, including Shaikh, are resisting the project.

All recognize that the slum, long neglected as an illegal encroachment, is urgently needing financial support and improvement. But they fear that this initiative – without resident participation – could potentially convert a piece of prime Mumbai real estate into an elite enclave, forcing out the disadvantaged, immigrant populations who have been there since the late 1800s.

This involved these marginalized, migrant workers who built up the empty marshland into an extensively researched phenomenon of community resilience and business activity, whose economic value is worth between $1m and two million dollars a year, making it among the globe's biggest unofficial markets.

Resettlement Issues

Among approximately a million residents living in the crowded 220-hectare zone, fewer than half will be qualified for replacement housing in the project, which is estimated to take an extended timeframe to complete. Additional residents will be moved to barren areas and coastal regions on the remote edges of the city, potentially break up a generations-old community. Some will not get homes at all.

Those allowed to continue living in the area will be allocated flats in high-rise buildings, a substantial change from the natural, collective approach of dwelling and laboring that has maintained this area for many years.

Commercial activities from tailoring to ceramic crafts and waste processing are expected to decrease in quantity and be transferred to a specific "commercial zone" far from homes.

Livelihood Crisis

For residents like Shaikh, a workshop owner and long-time of his family to live in this community, the plan presents a survival challenge. His makeshift, three-floor facility produces garments – formal jackets, suede trenches, fashionable garments – distributed in high-end shops in the city's affluent areas and overseas.

Relatives dwells in the rooms underneath and employees and tailors – migrants from other states – also sleep on-site, enabling him to afford their labour. Away from the slum, housing costs are typically 10 times as high for minimal space.

Harassment and Intimidation

In the official facilities nearby, an illustrated mock-up of the transformation initiative shows a contrasting perspective. Slickly dressed people gather on bicycles and eco-friendly transport, buying western-style baked goods and croissants and having coffee on an outdoor area adjacent to Dharavi Cafe and treat station. This represents a world away from the inexpensive idli sambar first meal and 5-rupee chai that maintains local residents.

"This isn't improvement for us," says the protester. "It represents a massive property transaction that will price people out for residents to remain."

There is also concern of the business conglomerate. Headed by a prominent businessman – one of India's most powerful and a close ally of the government head – the business group has faced accusations of crony capitalism and questionable practices, which it denies.

Although local authorities calls it a joint project, the developer invested nearly a billion dollars for its majority share. A case alleging that the redevelopment was improperly granted to the business group is under review in the nation's highest judicial body.

Ongoing Pressure

After they started to vocally oppose the project, Shaikh and other residents assert they have been faced a long-running campaign of coercion and warning – comprising phone calls, clear intimidation and suggestions that criticizing the development was comparable with anti-national sentiment – by people they allege are associated with the business conglomerate.

Part of the group alleged to have making intimidations is {a retired police officer|a former law enforcement official|an ex-c