In Episode 11 & 12 of Gosti we chat with the team of Café Arpan.
Café Arpan is located in Mumbai, Maharashtra that employs and is run by differently abled individuals. These individuals suffer from Intellectual and Developmental disabilities. They have challenged their own limitations, have risen above the societal sympathy and are asking for equal recognition!
In my quest for bringing in interesting stories to Gosti, I started following Café Arpan about a year ago, and here it is Gosti with the team of Café Arpan. My initial design of this session changed completely when I decided to drop a message on Café Arpan's website. I decided to wait a couple of days for their response. To my surprise , I received a reply from Ms. Ashaita Mahajan Trustee at Yash Charitable Trust (YCT), asking for more details on Gosti. In my reply to her email, I received a bitter sweet response. She agreed to having a session, but asked me to send general details about no of channel subscribers , average views, platforms shared etc? I had to be honest about both the evaluation criteria as well the intent and backend functioning of Gosti. Although, I requested her to consider all the factors, I suggested that it is okay if she decides to decline. I have liked the cause & I will still be including 'Café Arpan' in Gosti. It is undeniable that in the digital world, social media influence is a criteria of paramount importance . I have previously received replies which have said 'since your digital presence is not adequate, we would not want to invest our time, please gather the necessary information from our website' . or 'we are really busy can we push it further, where in it becomes open-ended'. I was pleasantly surprised and in disbelief, as she immediately responded saying that it was only for her knowledge and she is happy to discuss the opportunity to showcase Café Arpan on our chat show Gosti.
Next couple of weeks we went through multiple email/ phone/ whatsapp discussions as to how can we design the Gosti session that is slightly different than their earlier showcasing. Ashaita suggested that since they have been interviewed on countless occasions, it would be an interesting & different session to have her team members, as they call them at the Café, face an actual interview. We decided to include one of the trainers at the SKill Development Center of YCT in the chat as well. Ashaita's busy schedule let her select the perfect day for our interview. what better than 14th February, St.Valentine's Day to spend time with these amazing individuals.
I see Gosti with Café Arpan as an extension to my previous volunteering work with differently abled young children in the United States through the Rotaract Club of College Park, Maryland. One thing that Ashaita emphasised was that these are not children they are adults as she made me aware of their age. It changed my perception on interacting with them. After inquiring about the necessary precautions I should take , I decided to talk to them just as I would be chatting to a
co-worker/friend. It definitely helped me get over my apprehensions and clearly it was a Valentine's Day well spent.
Café Arpan is located in Juhu, "Shop 20, Juhu Ruturaj CHS Ltd. Juhu Tara Rd, Opp SNDT Women's University Mumbai Maharashtra 400049. An interesting read I found online , published by Better India on December 24,2021 , Author Tulika Chaturvedi , and to quote a few lines ,
"Even as YCT primarily relied on the family’s personal network for monetary support, the trustees launched a fundraising campaign on Impact Guru to raise additional money for setting up Café Arpan. Within first two weeks they had raised 5 lakhs."
"Last year Ashaita says that Café Arpan got a glimpse of what they hope is in store for them in the future. The establishment was approached by Vikhroli office of Accenture in January 2020, to run an in-house Café for over 3000 of their employees."
What about the food at the cafe? Well I haven't visited the café yet but what would you say for a Café thats featured by Chef Sanjeev Kapoor? Watch!
A few reviews that I liked on their facebook page....
Review by Anamika Mukharji (Feb9, 2019) She's also shared a couple of photos.
"Café Arpan is a little oasis of positivity that also serves great food and beverages with a smile. Things we ate and loved - Humus & Pita Bread, Falafel and French Fries. Washed down with filter coffee and adrak chai. Strongly recommended .
Review by Maitreyi Sharad Nigwekar (Nov 20, 2018) . She's attached food pictures too!
When you enter Café Arpan , you enter this beautiful world of inclusivity & the happiness that it creates radiates through each & every person present there. The food is amazing and I am yet to meet the staff members who are as polite as the ones at the Café Arpan.
Review by Ashwini Mandhare ( OCt 25, 2020)
Thank you Café Arpan. My family and I loved our brunch at the Café . The food was simply amazing, the team-so loving, the expereince- absolutely wonderful & the morning perfect. And I must say the methi puri chat is to die for.
Café Arpan was started by Yash Charitable Trust in 2018. Yash Charitable Trust works towards empowering differently abled individuals by providing them with employment, training them, enhancing their creative side and giving them the confidence to compete for their existence no different than us 'normal beings'.
ShwetSai is thankful to Ms. Ashaita Mahajan and the team members of Café Arpan for their time and having a wonderful Gosti with us.
Episode 11 & Episode 12 are available to view on our youtube channel, @gostiwithshwetsai
Episode 11
Episode 12
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About the Author:
Ms. Datta Sheth, a graduate of the University of Maryland , College Park , is a founder at ShwetSai Consultants.
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