<\/p>\n\n\n\n
What was once the site of a prominent protest has now blossomed into a vibrant food destination in India’s capital, VOA reported in an article yesterday.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Shaheen Bagh, a Muslim-majority neighborhood in New Delhi, has undergone a remarkable transformation in the four years since massive demonstrations took place there.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
In the winter of 2019-2020, thousands of women staged a sit-in on a highway to protest a citizenship law that many Muslims felt discriminated against them. But the area has since evolved, with the protest site giving way to a bustling food street that now draws hundreds of visitors.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
“When you sit in the protest for long, you feel exhausted, and out of exhaustion you come to a tea stall to sip a cup of tea. You don’t just sip tea, you sip ideas,” explained Aasif Mujtaba, one of the protest organizers.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
The influx of outsiders during the demonstrations helped introduce the area’s culinary delights to a wider audience. As the food’s reputation spread, more renowned eateries opened up shop, offering a range of cuisines from Mughlai to Afghan and Turkish.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
For locals, the food street represents more than just business – it helps break down misconceptions about the Muslim community. “Even today because of these food joints, a large number of people from outside Delhi, especially non-Muslims, come to Shaheen Bagh and with most of them it becomes their first experience of interacting with Muslims,” Mujtaba said.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cThe taboo of a bad Muslim, the taboo where Muslims are portrayed as terrorists, or the ghetto is portrayed as some unwelcoming space, this taboo is being removed by what? Food,\u201d he added.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
What was once the site of a prominent protest has now blossomed into a vibrant food destination in India’s capital, VOA reported in an article yesterday. Shaheen Bagh, a Muslim-majority neighborhood in New Delhi, has undergone a remarkable transformation in the four years since massive demonstrations took place there. In the winter of 2019-2020, thousands …<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":5,"featured_media":104703,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"rop_custom_images_group":[],"rop_custom_messages_group":[],"rop_publish_now":"yes","rop_publish_now_accounts":{"facebook_108372464460192_245495985553329":""},"rop_publish_now_history":[],"rop_publish_now_status":"pending","footnotes":""},"categories":[2929],"tags":[7941],"class_list":["post-104700","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-india","tag-muslim-neighborhood"],"yoast_head":"\n