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India’s First HIV+ Staffed Cafe In Kolkata Is Fighting Myths Related To The Virus

by Suchismita Pal
India’s First HIV+ Staffed Cafe In Kolkata Is Fighting Myths Related To The Virus

HIV positive patients face a lot of discrimination due to misconceptions related to the virus. They are often sidelined by the masses owing to the lack of proper information. People with the virus become victims of stigmatisation. As a result, they go through unfathomable emotional traumas. Experts say that the virus does not spread through touching, hugging, kissing or being around someone who has HIV. It does not spread by drinking water from a glass offered by a patient or eating the food cooked by the person. To dispel the myths associated with the virus and generate employment of HIV positive youth, Kallol Ghosh had launched Cafe Positive in 2018 in the heart of South Kolkata. It is the first-ever HIV positive staffed cafe in India.

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The Cafe Is An Initiative Of OFFER NGO

Set in Lake View Road, Ballygunge, Cafe Positive is operated by HIV positive youths from Anandarghar. Anandarghar gives shelter to HIV positive orphans or those who were abandoned by their family members for carrying the virus. The cafe is an initiative of the NGO named Organisation For Friends Energies and Resources ( OFFER). Anandarghar is a project of OFFER that aims to give a normal livelihood to HIV positive children. It gives them medical, emotional and developmental support to allow them to grow up like other kids. The best part is, the city of joy, Kolkata has socially aware people, and the cafe receives a good number of customers too.

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The Cafe Serves Burgers, Sandwiches, Rice Bowls, Pastries And More

Inside the quirky ambience of the cafe, the welcoming young peeps offer a wide array of delish food options. At Cafe Positive, foodies can savour myriad veg and non-veg food options, from cheese toasts, fries, wraps, pastries and burgers to rice bowls, sandwiches, pasta and steak. The Pork Wrap and BBQ Pork Burger served at the cafe are too good to resist. What’s more, the cafe also offers refreshing variants of coffee like Cappucino, Americano, Caffe Latte and Cold Coffee. Live music sessions also take place out here.

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So, are you up for sipping coffee and relishing food for a cause?