From October 10 to November 2, 2025, Conscious Connections Nepal (CCN), with support from the Conscious Connections Foundation (CCF) and in partnership with Giving Face, organized a 10-day makeup training in Kalaiya Municipality, Bara District for transgender women and LGBTQI+ individuals, including those living with HIV. Please read our first post about the training here. Interviews were conducted during the training, and five stories were developed to document stories of resilience, discrimination, and hope. This is story #3, the story of Punam Kumari Kayastha
We Come and Go in Respect
My Story, by Punam Kumari Kayastha
My name is Punam Kumari Kayastha. I’m 40 years old and live in Kalaiya with my daughter, who is preparing for her SEE exams. When people ask me what I do, I tell them: I help others live — because that’s what saved me.
I work with the Blue Diamond Society as a field officer, helping people living with HIV. Since 2014, I’ve identified more than 350 HIV cases in Bara District — men, women, transgender people, even children.
But this is more than a job for me. It’s personal.
Photo Credit: Rohan Thapa, photographer
Years ago, I was married, expecting twins. My husband never told me he was HIV positive. When I miscarried, the doctors discovered I was also infected. My husband later died from meningitis. His family blamed me, threw me out of their home. I was left with nothing.
For a long time, I cried every night. But then, something inside me shifted. I thought — if I’ve suffered this much, maybe I can stop others from suffering the same.
Today, I help people start medication, make follow-ups, and remind them they are not alone. I go door to door, visit health posts, and work closely with municipalities. Some days are exhausting, but when a client tells me, “Because of you, I’m alive,”I know I’ve done something right.
Funding cuts after the USAID project ended made our work harder. But we continue — because this community can’t be abandoned.
I often say, “Ezzat le jane ho, ezzat le aune ho” — we come and go in respect. That’s my philosophy. I lost my home once, but I built a new one in the hearts of the people I serve.