Antoni. "I was a restaurant worker in Bombay, and occasionally I would visit prostitutes. On September the 12th 1997, I can say the exact moment, my status was known to me. I felt demolished. I thought AIDS = death. The end had come; I had had the final call. I was thirty-five and my parents were also urging me to marry. I told them that as restaurant worker I had only a small salary and was unable to support a wife. I cannot tell my family, only some of my intimate friends know. If my family knew I know they would refuse me. I am the eldest son. My mother is uneducated, and if she knew she would certainly die. My father is a drinker, and I know he would tell the whole village, he would be unable to keep his secret. I was invited to a meeting of the Indian Network for People with Aids. At the meeting in Bangalore, there were seventeen or eighteen people and they were all HIV positive. At first I was very shy, but I was so happy to not be alone. There were young girls, educated people, doctors, engineers, people like me. Being with them I learnt to cope with HIV, how to cope with depression, how to deal with legal issues, with human rights issues, and how to deal with marriage. That session impressed me a lot. I was happy and felt I could now cope with society. After that I felt normal again.."
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