It was early February 2020. I was headed off with my camera crew, our field officer – Kumar and our NGO partner from Bagalkot to visit and film some Fiar Price shops. There were muttered rumours of a virus called COVID. WhatsApp messages, sounding the alarm of a pandemic, were traveling faster than the virus itself. But at that point the threat was still incomprehensible to us and seemed far away. Thankfully, it did not stop this very important tour of our project. Our first stop was in the main city area of Ilkal, a few miles away from the District Headquarters. Ilkal is known for its very distinctive traditional saree woven by artists in North Karnataka. The Ilkal saree, a 6-to-9-yard of fabric, commonly worn by the women in India, is made of cotton as well as silk. The loose end or pallu of the Ilkal saree consists of alternate color stripes woven in pure silk and the use of a form of embroidery called Kasuti which reflect traditional patterns like palanquins, elephants and lotuses. It was not very difficult to find the newly constructed shop as the local residents knew it well and could easily guide us to it. Fair Price shops have been important landmarks in India since the 1960s and are commonly called ration shops.