Madurai got a one of its kind all transgender hotel named Madurai Trans Kitchen last week near Goripalayam junction.
A non-governmental organization named Swasti, which has been working towards uplifting marginalized people across 20 districts in the State, funded the initiative in association with organizations like Arghyam, Virutti, and Sri Lakshmi Pengal Munnetra Sangam.
The hotel will play a significant role in removing the stigma surrounding trans people, apart from providing them with a reliable form of employment, believes Priya Babu, Regional Programme Manager at Swasti and transgender herself.
“There is no better way to connect with a human than serving them with tasty food. In that way, this hotel will pave way for trans people to form connections with the public who are generally hesitant to communicate with us,” she said while speaking to The Hindu.
Sharing the proud moment of opening of #MadurTransKitchen by our community members at Madurai. #We wish to express our gratitude to @arghyamindia @Vrutti_Catalyst @SwastiHC
— Taaras Coalition (@TaarasCoalition) September 17, 2021
and @SELCOFoundation for supporting us to achieve this milestone. #diversifiedlivelihood pic.twitter.com/JFOEirr7b1
Food items in the hotel are very affordable, and they are planning to provide free hot water to the public and about 100 ml of milk to mothers of infants.
“We want to show the society that we are socially responsible too,” added Priya.
About 15 trans workers in the kitchen were earlier running a catering service named Nambu Nayaki Amman Catering Service for the past few years at Ulaganeri until the pandemic hit. As their business was severely affected, they thought of opening a permanent restaurant. Yet, they would continue to run the previous catering service on the sidelines, for it provided them a platform to rise.
The work in the hotel is equally shared among all of them, from the preparation of food to supplying it and collecting bills while the employees work on a shift basis, said Rubika (28), one among the 15 transgender to TNIE.
If you went to madurai ,visit and support this hotel run by Transgenders who are offering food at affordable price 🙂 😊 pic.twitter.com/Qdu7aanOBp
— Eldritch (@black_thangam) September 19, 2021
After the inauguration, people in the surrounding have responded positively to their hotel. But it wasn’t all rosy. They got money from sponsors, but no ‘gentlemen’ from the city was ready to rent out a building to run the business.
Also, read: First Two Transgender Clinics Get Launched In Hyderabad
“We ran from pillar to post for four months until we met one Arunkumar Menon, who gave us the building,” said Jeyachitra, the head of the setup.
Besides this, the SELCO Foundation has extended help by ensuring that 80% of the power consumption inside is done using solar power. For this, they had installed a wet grinder, freezers, a mixie, juicers, lights, and fans that can function using solar energy.