A young and inspiring lyricist has opened a tea shop on the Chennai’s Marina beach some six months ago but for a good reason. He wants to promote eco-friendly environment.
The Hindu
The 28-year-old Dheena said that his competitors served beverages in plastic, paper or glass cups. “But I chose to serve tea or coffee in cups made of coconut shells,” he told The Hindu.
“There were a few reasons why I wanted to use the coconut shell,” he said.
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“When you are doing something that many are already good at, you have to find ways to stand apart. So, when I realised that we were setting up a shop close to the beach, we wanted to go eco-friendly and generate as little waste as possible,” he said.
Using 60-70 cups in a day
Initially, Dheena bought quite a lot of cups and started his venture. Then, with time, he found it was not viable and simultaneously hired a few persons to make coconut shells exclusively for the shop. “Now, we use close to 60-70 cups in the shop a day. I hear it is also healthy for people to use coconut shells as cups,” he said.
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Despite inflation and rising costs, he helps those hungry and offers black coffee for just one rupee a cup every Monday.
“I am addicted to black coffee. So, initially when I set up the shop and saw many on the beach who cannot afford to buy anything to drink, I thought at least, I can provide black coffee for one rupee,” he says.
Opening more shops
After his shop became a hit, he is now starting two more shops at Pammal and Purasawalkam where he plans to use bamboo cups.
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“With the competition in the market, we have to be different and pull a crowd,” he says.
Dheena added that he is a poet and has a wish to write the lyrics for the films.
Article Credits: The Hindu