When our daughter and SIL lived in an apartment Indians lived right below on the 1st Floor. Visiting was not pleasant. I had to hold my breath going in and out of the building or I'd almost puke.
(yet liberal anti smoking nazis will allow this air pollution while wanting to hang any smoker. go figure)
Indian food - yummy. Chappatis, dal, and sabzi... lived in India off and on during the 70s and 80s, and could never get enough of that home cookin’...
I hope you got the answer from Jack Hammers given below.. may be the time when you went to that apartment they might be roasting some “dry fish”, which i can’t take it too.. they say that it is tasty and good for health, but i never tried and i will never try..