On any normal monsoon day, three Mumbai football coaches — Prasad Bhosale, Siddhesh Srivastav, and Samrat Rana — would have been plotting with kids how to win the next game at a school tournament.

Instead, in the midst of the Covid-19 outbreak, Bhosale is selling vegetables, Srivastav is making kebabs at home, while Rana works as a delivery man for a restaurant. The pandemic means football academies don’t require their services at least until the situation normalises, and the three have been forced to fend for themselves in other ways.

“When I sold vegetables, I did feel awkward for the first few days. I am a Masters in Physical Education, a double graduate, and selling vegetables now. But when your stomach is empty and there are more hungry people at home, you stop thinking all that. I carry grain bags and vegetables on my shoulders, fill my cart, and sell on the streets,” said Bhosale.

He was told in March that his services won’t be required and later his school laid off the physical education (PE) teacher, dance teacher, and the music teacher. Bhosale resorted to selling vegetables in the Mumbai suburb of Kandivali.