3 weeks ago
Mumbai estate agent's 'flats only for vegetarians' video draws flak
A man who sells houses made a video on the internet.
In the video, he says only vegetarian people can buy a new apartment in Mumbai, India.
The apartment costs a very big amount of money called 6.5 crore rupees.
Many people who saw the video are upset.
They say it is not fair to stop people from buying a home because they eat meat.
Some people say this is a kind of unfair separation called 'food apartheid.'
Mumbai is a city where many different people live together, and people want to keep it that way.
In the past, famous movie actors said they were also turned away from housing societies.
The house seller says the home is only for vegetarians, but many people think everyone should be able to buy a home no matter what they eat.
Real estate agent Bhavesh Kaware posted a viral Instagram video advertising a 2BHK flat in Tardeo, south Mumbai, for Rs 6.5 crore that is available only to vegetarians.
Social media users condemned the restriction as a case of Mumbai's cosmopolitanism giving way to 'food apartheid' and overt social discrimination.
User Shubham argued Mumbai belongs to the Marathi people, the Agari-Koli community and the common people of Maharashtra, questioning who decides what others eat.
The video follows past cases where Bollywood actor Saif Ali Khan said housing societies turned him away while house hunting in 2012 after his marriage to Kareena Kapoor.
In 2014, actor Emraan Hashmi said a posh housing society had turned him down as well.
No exact date was given for the video, and articles provide no response from the agent to the criticism.
- Who
- Real estate agent Bhavesh Kaware, who posted the video as 'propertytransactionguru' on Instagram, and social media critics including user Shubham; past cases involved actors Saif Ali Khan and Emraan Hashmi.
- What
- A viral video advertising a 2BHK flat in Tardeo for Rs 6.5 crore that is only open to vegetarian buyers, sparking accusations of 'food apartheid' and social discrimination.
- Where
- Tardeo in south Mumbai, India, with reactions spreading on social media.
- When
- The article gives no exact date for the video's posting; earlier comparable cases were reported in 2012 and 2014.
- Why
- The vegetarian-only restriction prompted criticism that denying someone a home because they eat fish, mutton or chicken is overt social discrimination.
Critics of diet-based housing restrictions
Practice of restricting housing sales by diet
Vegetarian-only housing sales
Critics of diet-based housing restrictions
Critics call the restriction 'food apartheid' and overt social discrimination, arguing that denying a home to people who eat fish, mutton or chicken is an arbitrary act that undermines Mumbai's cosmopolitanism.
Practice of restricting housing sales by diet
The agent markets the Tardeo flat as open only to vegetarians, and the article notes there have been much-publicised prior cases of housing societies rejecting buyers, including actors Saif Ali Khan (2012) and Emraan Hashmi (2014).
Key facts
- Agent
- Bhavesh Kaware (Instagram: 'propertytransactionguru')
- Property
- 2BHK flat
- Price
- Rs 6.5 crore
- Location
- Tardeo, south Mumbai
- Restriction
- Only vegetarian buyers welcome
- Platform
- Prior case (2012)
- Saif Ali Khan turned away by housing societies
- Prior case (2014)
- Emraan Hashmi turned down by a posh housing society
Quotes
Shubham
Social media user criticizing the agent’s policy
“"Who are you to decide what someone eats or doesn't eat in Mumbai? Denying someone a home just because they eat fish, mutton, or chicken isn't merely an arbitrary act of granting or withholding housing but shows overt social discrimination,"”
m.rediff.com










