At 5:45 AM, Ramesh Sharma, a 52-year-old bank manager, was already in the kitchen, his grey stubble illuminated by the single tube light. He was making chai . This was his sacred, non-negotiable ritual. He added ginger, cardamom, and a mountain of sugar to the boiling milk and water. The aroma snaked through the three-bedroom flat in Mumbai’s suburbs, a silent but effective alarm for the rest of the family.