A food safety officer has become a social media star in India - why?

Cockroaches scurry across kitchen floors. Spider webs cling to walls. Spoiled vegetables rot in corners, while food counters show signs of pest infestation.

One might assume these scenes belong to a struggling restaurant. But the photos are from a members-only club in Mumbai - India's financial capital and the capital of its richest state Maharashtra.

They are among dozens of photos and videos that have gone viral since May, after Maharashtra's Food and Drug Administration (FDA) began a series of inspections at restaurants, cafes and other food businesses across the state.

At the centre of the crackdown is 51-year-old civil servant Tukaram Mundhe, the state's new food commissioner.

Since taking charge in May, Mundhe has overseen thousands of inspections and says food safety laws must be enforced regardless of a business's size, influence or reputation.

His department has suspended the licences of several quick-commerce warehouses and sent notices to Bollywood celebrities for doing advertisements suspected of indirectly promoting restricted products.

"These actions are taken in public health interest. We will continue to take them against violations," Mundhe told the BBC.

The campaign has made Mundhe a recognisable face across India, rare for a civil servant.