Café Arpan, a restaurant run by persons with disabilities, left an indelible impression on its customers who went there to celebrate Friendship Day on Sunday.
The four-day-old café near Shreemati Nathibai Damodar Thackersey Women’s University, Santacruz, has been set up by Yash Charitable Trust, an NGO, which helps persons with learning disabilities. The objective behind the restaurant is to bring the community into the mainstream.
‘ Happy to return’
Vandana Advani (56) and her family were among the visitors. “ We were impressed by the warm service we received at Café Arpan. I’d be happy to return here for my birthday next week.”
Another customer, Dushna Elavia, who works for Dhrishti Foundation, an NGO, was wondering whether the staff would face problems while socialising with customers. “I was pleasantly surprised by their enthusiastic welcome. They even handled the food with care,” she said.
The inspiration
The idea of Café Arpan, Sushama Nagarkar, managing trustee, Yash Charitable Trust, said, came to them when they heard about a Puzzle Cafe in Manila, Philippines, where it has employed autistic people.
“The trustees and beneficiaries were very keen on setting up a similar restaurant in Mumbai. So, we collaborated with Impact Guru, a crowd-funding platform, in October 2017. Four months ago, we managed to get a licence of three years from the civic body,” Ms. Nagarkar said.
The staff consist of 12 people with disabilities along with a few family members who work as volunteers. Most of the beneficiaries serve food while the volunteers take the orders and supervise the service.
Aarti Nagarkar (32), a staff member who has autism, said, “I was working for the dabba delivery service started by the Yash Charitable Trust before I joined Café Arpan. I want to work as a cook, but right now I enjoy interacting with customers and serving them food.”
Mangala Rajwade, parent of one of the beneficiaries, said adults who have disabilities such as autism, down syndrome, and learning disorders function at a different wavelength. “They tend to get tired sooner than other people but once they take interest in work, their performance gets better. Right now, our goal is to show society how people with disabilities can be an important part of the mainstream workforce.”
