From childhood playmates to train companions and mommies who become your friends, every phase of life introduces us to a new kind of friendship, explains Divya Nair.
We often grow up believing that the best friends we'll ever have are the ones we meet in school or college.
The classmates we shared our lunch boxes with, celebrated birthdays with, whispered secrets to and had sleepovers with.
But as we grow older and life takes us in different directions, we slowly make room for new friendships.
Sometimes it's in the city we live in, the building we move into, the train we catch every day or a hobby we decide to pursue. Without even realising it, these people become an important part of our lives.
Building Friends
Have you even had a childhood if you never played cricket with plastic bats in your building compound or corridor?
Or been chased away by the perpetually annoyed aunty who couldn't stand the noise?
Or spent hours sitting on the staircase, talking about everything and nothing with your gang, completely oblivious to the world around you?
My building friends rarely studied in the same school or were even of the same age.
Yet, we grew up together.
We celebrated every festival, competed over who made the prettiest rangoli, pranked each other during Holi and stood with each other through good times and bad.
Though we lived a few floors apart, the entire neighbourhood felt like an extended family.
Train Friends
Mumbai is one of those rare cities where lifelong friendships can begin on a local train.
While pursuing my post-graduation, I work during the day and rushed to college in the evening.
After my classes ended at 8.30 pm, I would race to catch the 8.47 pm fast train.
By then, my train friends -- mostly aunties and working women -- would have already saved me a seat.
The 60- to 70-minute journey was never just a commute.
At every station, a few familiar faces would board while others would wave goodbye for the night.
Despite being exhausted, we played Antakshari and dumb charades, exchanged recipes, discussed family dramas, celebrated promotions and comforted one another.
At Ghatkopar (north east Mumbai), a group of girls working at a jewellery store would often board with fresh samosas or vadas.
A few years later, I became part of a Ladies Special train group of nearly 15 women, aged between 21 to 60.
We attended each other's weddings and birthdays, celebrated festivals together and even went shopping with our families.
In fact, my friend and I learned to crochet on the train.
Dance Group Friends
A few months before the lockdown, I signed up for a Kathak class.
I was 35; the youngest student in the class was just seven years old.
Over the next three years, the people I met there became much more than classmates.
Every class ended with a glass of fresh juice and long conversations.
Sunday breakfasts after class soon became a tradition we all looked forward to.
Since most of us were working professionals, we understood how difficult it was to balance work, home and practice.
It was challenging and some of us wanted to quit.
Yet, we motivated one another to stay on track, organised group calls and study sessions, helped each other prepare for exams and supported one another during annual day performances and stage events.
When we all scored distinctions in our Kathak exam, the achievement felt like a group victory.
Mommy Friends
Who would have thought that while texting on WhatsApp groups, exchanging homework updates and complaining about the syllabus, we would find another circle of friends?
From sharing lunchbox recipes to organising props and stationery at the last minute for school assignments, mommy friends are multitasking genies who always have a jugaad for every situation and somehow make parenting a little less challenging.
Bonus: One of them even helped me buy a home.
As we grow up, we realise that not all friendships are meant to last a lifetime. But each one comes into your life and leaves behind so many memories. And, along with it, a version of you that stays long after the friendship has faded away.
