A fun-filled Diwali night turned into a morning of despair and grief for the Malayali community in Navi Mumbai on Tuesday. A Malayali couple, Sundar and Pooja, and their daughter Vedika died in the fire outbreak at the MG complex, Vashi in the early morning hours of Tuesday. Malayali residents who stayed adjacent to the housing society said that the bodies were recovered in a partially burnt state and it is believed that they died mainly of smoke inhalation.

"It was Pooja's family members who first reached the spot. They found them lying in the room. Smoke had engulfed the flat," a Malayali resident said.

Pooja is the daughter of Rajan, a known name among the Malayali business community in Mumbai. He has been a resident of Mumbai for over three decades and owns two tyre shops in Mumbai. The couple has recently moved into the 3-bedroom flat in one of the four towers of the Raheja residency, Sector-14, Vashi.

Raju, a long-term acquaintance of Rajan and who runs a business in Navi Mumbai, said that preliminary information indicated that the fire originated on the 10th floor. "The couple was in the 12th floor. The fire soon spread to the upper floors. Each floor housed three flats. Many of the residents were able to move out except for Sundar and his family and a bedridden old woman," said Raju.

Many members of various associations gathered in front of the morgue at Vashi municipality hospital where the autopsy was underway. "We understand that all of them gathered at Sundar's flat on Monday for the Diwali celebrations. They were all together till 11.30 pm. Rajan sir and family live close by. They left for their apartment and by midnight, they were alerted about the fire outbreak," said Raju.

The reports about fire outbreak began to trickle in around midnight and the death of a couple and their daughter was confirmed early in the morning. Balan Panikker, a member of Sreenarayana Mandira Samithi and a resident of Mumbai, said that the tragedy has left the community shaken."It was really tragic, it was a festive night for all of us, and Tuesday was a holiday. We woke up hearing this shocking news," said Panikker.

Videos and photos of the apartment surfaced after the incident showed soot-stained photographs of Vedika with Sundar and Pooja. The furniture was fully charred. The floor was strewn with burnt remains of clothes and other materials. The wall painting had peeled off due to extreme heat, and smoke stains were visible in all the rooms.