As countries across the world slowly start easing up from the Coronavirus lockdown, government officials are figuring out how to reopen cities and towns while keeping certain restrictions in tact to make sure residents stay safe and healthy as they get back to their daily routine with restrictions.
One city in particular and my favorite is Mumbai, India a vibrant and energetic city of over 18.41M residents which has been on lockdown since March 25 bringing the city to a complete halt. Phase one of a partial reopening has begun on June 8, bringing millions back from isolation and back to work to begin being their daily routine .
Residents are ready to being their full daily routine again when Mumbai opens up fully on June 30 ending India’s third extended lockdown. To date, 6,348 people have died due to the Coronavirus pandemic in India with 250,770 active cases and 109,462 have recovered.
The phase one of the June 8 reopening including religious places including temples, many restaurants and shopping malls and parks.
From millionaire Bollywood film stars to everyday daily wage earning migrant workers, the lockdown has effected everyone living in the populous city.
One of the most effected industries from the lockdown has been tourism. International flights heading in and out of India ceased operations on March 30 causing billions of dollars in loss revenue for India. Many of the larger airlines including British Airways, Air-India and United are still on hold until phase three of the reopening occurs in late summer 2020. However, Air-India has started to fly domestically within India. In 2019, India brought in close to 10 million tourists.
A devastating part of the lockdown has been the loss of income for the millions of migrant workers who travel to Mumbai to make their living and feed their families back home in their villages. The workers, many of whom rely on daily wages, were the hardest hit as consumers stopped spending as retail stores, cafes, outdoor markets were closed.
Many migrants went back to their villages to wait out the lockdown thanks and were able to do so, thanks to Bollywood superstar Vinod Sood. A top A list actor in Bollywood films, (think Tom Cruise+Brad Pitt) Sood used his own money and financed 350 migrant workers on chartered buses back to their villages and even chartered a plane adding more workers to fly home safely.
That is the kind of spirit Mumbaikers have and despite multiply struggles and tribulations, they manage to come together to help one another in a time of need.
One of the largest and most expensive industries hardest hit in India is the film producing industry, particularly the Mumbai based Bollywood, India’s prolific and largest Hindi film producing industry in the world which has lost billions in revenue.
India produces close to 2000 films per year screened in multiplexes across the country to mass audiences. Indian films are an intricate part of the population which has become a powerful part of daily living for the 1.3 billion plus population.
The lockdown closed down film, TV and music recording studios, sending thousands into unemployment and financial uncertainty. With zero movies being produced, actors, cast and crew workers had no choice but to stay home until the pandemic was under control.
“This lockdown not only damaged us financially but also emotionally,” states one well-known producer who wanted to remain anonymous. “The industry lost millions in delayed films and many actors needed to be paid and we couldn’t do it due to lack of income. It’s been a nightmare.”
As India slowly starts to ease restrictions, producers and directors in Mumbai are optimistic that both film and TV studios will hopefully open by June 30 and productions that been stalled since March 20, can resume again. “We’ll be lucky if we can make up a fraction of loss revenue by the end of the year” states the Mumbai based producer.
Another greatly affected area of Mumbai and all over India, has been the inability to celebrate religious festivals & events that bring in millions of dollars in revenue and people from all over India. One of the biggest Hindu holidays which draws millions into Mumbai every year is the welcoming of the spring festival Holi, the celebration of colors. The festival brings residents and tourists from all over the world to partake in this colorful and vibrant holiday filled with dancing, singing and parties. This year, people celebrated at home and all massive gatherings and events were cancelled due to the virus outbreak.
This year’s pandemic has also made festival organizers scale back on celebrations including one of the most famous festivals in Mumbai, the ten day Lord Ganesh celebration known as Ganesh Chathurthi. Giant size Ganesh idols are paraded down the streets in front of millions singing and dancing. Since the festival usually takes about 12 months to prepare, this year’s event, slated for late August, will be celebrated on a much smaller platform curtailing the amount of visitors, events and donations. The festival along with Diwali (the festival of lights) are considered to be the two top revenue producing events in India.
With one of the most popular cities in India about to fully open, it won’t be long before Mumbai’s trademarked packed streets, bustling airport traffic, packed silk sari and gold jewelry shops, 5 star hotels and packed multiplexes are in full swing again!
Incredible India!
Many readers have reached out to me asking which YouTube videos are the best ones to learn about Mumbai, Indian culture or how to plan a trip to India. For someone who have been to India a million times before, I know what to look for especially for tourists. Below is a list of popular YouTube Channels that I have been following for a while which share personal journeys by popular travel vloggers and their adventurous trip to India. Enjoy!
- Davidsbeenthere– Created by world traveler David Hoffman, his incredibly produced videos of his travels around the world are noteworthy and entertaining. His visit to the Mumbai will show you everything from food, tourist sites and the daily living of the people of Mumbai. https://youtu.be/OCS8KhakJhY
- U S Consulate Mumbai: Wonderful videos featuring celebrities, educators, prominent figures including Edgard Kagan, current Consul General of Mumbai and his daily busy schedule. Great videos. A must for people wanting to visit Mumbai for the first time. Take notes!https://youtu.be/HaEYljCMmJs
- Travel Vlog IV– hosted by famous travel vlogger Ivana, the channel takes you throughout her life living in India. She is not a tourist. She has been living in India for years and tells her stories with great interest. https://youtu.be/2yBN56wMno4
- Karl Rock– Famously known for his videos on exposing scammers from Indian call centers, Rock has become quite the “Rockstar” in the world of YouTube vloggers. Not only does he live in India (Rock is from New Zealand and makes India his home now) but he is also married to a lovely Indian lady who travels with him. Terrific videos with lots of interesting stories. https://youtu.be/2aZp4c_kjK
The journey continues…
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