Dawn Images

Coffee Wagera made waves with its incusivity policies when it announced it wants to hire transgender people.

Now the coffee shop has brought its first transgender barista Moni Bhatt on board and made the happy announcement on social media.

Images got in touch with the cafe owner Mush Panjwani, who had earlier expressed his desire to have trans people feel welcome at his coffee shop.

"I've had the job posting out for so long now and it was not easy finding someone. Not all trans people want to work in a cafe. In my search, I've had a few phone conversations and most of them were hesitant and for the right reasons. One of them told me about her bad experiences working in similar places. Either because of the customers or because of the co workers or even management; they wouldn't understand the problems a trans person would go through."

"Such horror stories are so common that many don't even want to give a job a shot. But I didn't give up."

Mush continued his search. He knew he needed to connect with the right people and so he did.

"Last week I attended an event by the Sub Rang Society at Goethe. It was an event which aimed for solidarity withing the community for trans people. I asked about why trans people are hesitant to work even when there are places giving opportunities and the people there gave me answers that were really eye opening."

The coffee owner added,"They explained all the issues a trans person has when working and its something as small as transportation. They can't use public transportation because they get harassed by people. There are also very few job openings and then there is always the fear of how they'll be treated,"

Through this interaction he realised how difficult it truly is for a trans person to lead a normal life. Mush also revealed that is was Kami Sid, who also heads the Sub Rang Society, who got in touch with him to find someone for the job.

"She is amazing, she took it up as a challenge and that's how we met Moni."

Speaking about Moni's experience at the cafe, Mush said, "She's just had her first day yesterday and she loved it. She's a fast learner and got the hang of the job very quickly. The best part is that my other team members treat her as a member of the team. For me that was a concern, that my team members understand this and neither cause her any discomfort or are uncomfortable themselves. I was very happy with the result of her first day."

Coffee Wagera's latest team member has inspired other places to take on the same initiative. Recently, Red Riding Hood Bakery has teamed up with Actcept and posted a job ad for a trans person as well.

The transgender community of Pakistan has been making strides recently and this is yet another welcome addition. We hope to see more such initiatives in the near future.

Images has reached out to Moni Bhatt for a comment and is awaiting a response.