A walk down Mohammed Ali Road and the back alleys of Raudat Tahera during the month of Ramzan usually offers a mix of festive chaos, and the aroma of kebabs. Mumbaikars belonging to various localities and religious communities come together and celebrate food till midnight every day. The situation this year, however, has been unlike any in the past due to the lockdown. Owners of three famous eateries from the locality paint a lugubrious picture of celebrations in times of COVID-19.

Labourers return home
It's not just kebabs and shawarmas but the hundreds of earthen bowls of phirni, glasses of colourful falooda and trays of barfi heaped in front of the sweet stores of Mohammed Ali Road that complete the gratifying picture of the food that the locality offers. Irfan Mithaiwala of Suleman Mithaiwala sells various sweets, including the famous Aflatoon. But for the first time since the shop opened in 1989, Mithaiwala has shut production. "All my labourers have returned to their native places. Initially, we managed home deliveries, but eventually, everyone left for their hometown and we had to shut down," said Mithaiwala, who has an outlet in Mumbai Central. He adds that he doesn't know when will they reopen.