At one of luxury mall Palladium’s most popular restaurants, Ishaara, assistant manager Tarik Hossain is holding up ably as second in command. He scans the room with attention, pouring a glass of water when it empties, wiping clean crumbs off a table without disturbing a guest who is mid-meal and checking if someone would like seconds. And he smiles. A lot. Hossain, 31, tells us by using his hands and expressing with his eyes, that he learnt it all from “Clyde sir”; seven years ago, he was struggling with even how to use a napkin or greet a guest.

Tarik Hossain, a speech and hearing-impaired person, joined Mirchi and Mime as a steward in 2015. Today, not only has he risen to the rank of assistant restaurant manager, but is also involved in recruitment of other speech and hearing-impaired persons and their training. Here he is teaching his team members how to greet guests, serve water or ensure that  cutlery is spotless. Pic/Ashish Raje