Why young Indians are paying to meet strangers
Why young Indians are paying to meet strangers
TNN
Updated: Jun 14, 2025, 19:30 IST
From potlucks to themed house parties, a new wave of offline meetups is helping people forge real connections.
Aziz walked into a restaurant in Mumbai unsure of what was on the menu — or who he'd be dining with. Fresh off a breakup and weighed down by exams, he had signed up for a dinner with five strangers through Timeleft , a Paris-based company curating meetups in cities across India and abroad, just to try something unfamiliar.
That evening, Yukti, Parth, and Atit joined him — strangers from different backgrounds, each drawn by the same desire for a 'real, meaningful connection.' Over two hours, their conversation flowed from the polite 'What brings you here?' to tales of childhood mischief, travel disasters, and one near-kidnapping. 'It felt less like meeting strangers and more like rediscovering the joy of simply being human, offline,' they agreed.
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
New Indian Express
4 hours ago
- New Indian Express
Silver anniversary of a marriage made for TV
These days, much of my family time is spent watching my ageing father watch KBC episodes on a loop on YouTube. I jokingly call it a 'soother' for his fretful, fading mind. His unconditional love for the show and my shared viewing with him has given me an empathetic perspective beyond my entrenched cynicism and equivocation. The recent seasons of KBC have been all about Bachchan carrying forward the mantle of the Baghban patriarch effectively to the next level. He is the dignified elder but not distant, stately but not authoritarian. He is a confidant who inspires people across age groups to share their deepest feelings with him and, in turn, the nation at large. Be it a young couple's pain at their parents not accepting their inter-caste marriage or a couple forced to live separately in distant cities because of workplace demands. It's something Shah Rukh Khan couldn't channel in his one season as a host despite his flair. Bachchan smoothly adapts to the personality of each of the contestants—playful, jocular, theatrical or serious. He might be playing the lead, yet becomes the supporting actor and ally for participants, letting them take centre-stage. He tries not to be the hero in what is arguably his best role since being Salim-Javed's Vijay. The very sentimentality and wealth creation that KBC has been critiqued for appear to be its trump cards, because it all boils down to the triumph of the underdog. It's tough to not get moved by the plight of Usmanbhai, a farmer from Uttar Pradesh, matter of fact in talking about the vagaries of income and the inability to pay his child's fee for seven months. Or Sudhir Kumar Verma, a daily wage earner, referring to his trial by fire of being scorched in the furnace of mines. How can one not celebrate the never-say-die spirit of Himani Bundela, the first visually impaired crorepati on the show? And what's not to appreciate about Jayant Dule playing for the money to build bathrooms for the women in his village? It's a peep into the social contradictions of India and puts the spotlight on the struggles of the invisibilised, and their rare shots at success. In the last episode of season 16, Bachchan admitted being the kendra (centre) of the show, but one supported by three mahashaktis (superpowers)—the participants, viewers on the sets and those watching the show in their homes. It's hard to imagine that this trinity would have left him untouched. For someone who has been mythologised as the representative of the marginalised, personifying the social discontent and defiance of the times in the peak of his stardom as the screen's Angry Young Man, it's somehow apt to see him interacting with those common Indians in his most persuasive avatar since Vijay. It's about a superstar climbing down from his ivory tower to mingle with hoi polloi and make the privileged among us do the same. Read all columns by Namrata Joshi Consulting Editor Follow her on X @Namrata_Joshi
NDTV
6 hours ago
- NDTV
Video Of Indian Tourists Dancing In Thailand Goes Viral, Internet Reacts
A video of a group of Indian tourists dancing in Thailand is going viral on social media. The clip, shared on X, shows a group of Indian tourists dancing with great energy at Safari World, a zoo in Bangkok. The audience appears to be mostly Indian, though a few onlookers from other countries can be spotted in the background. They appear surprised and a bit upset. The video has an overlay text saying, "When you visit Thailand to see Thai people everywhere." Sharing the video on X, user @baldwhiner wrote, "Dear desi tourists abroad WE BEG YOU ... if you weren't a singer, dancer, stand-up comic or wildlife whisperer back home ... this is not the time to start let's not make the whole planet suffer 2nd-hand embarrassment on our behalf." Watch the video below: dear desi tourists abroad WE BEG YOU 🙏🏼… if you weren't a singer, dancer, stand-up comic or wildlife whisperer back home … this is not the time to start let's not make the whole planet suffer 2nd-hand embarrassment on our behalf — JΛYΣƧΉ (@baldwhiner) June 20, 2025 The video has gone viral, accumulating more than 549,000 views. It has sparked mixed reactions online, with many criticising the tourists for their behaviour. "Our behavior will ensure that even the 2nd and fellow 3rd world countries will stop issuing visa on arrival," wrote one user. "Embarrassing, I wouldn't mind if they had rhythm and could show some good those pot belly dancing in the group must be banned," commented another. "This is because fellow Indians have been praising this mediocrity back home. It wouldn't happen if we start calling a pot a pot," expressed a third user. However, some users defended the tourists. One user said, "How about you chill out. There is nothing embarrassing about it more than what you make yourself believe." "The song is playing in the background. You never know if they were encouraged to do this. During our Vietnam Cruise, we were encouraged to dance and sing, and so were Japanese and philipino people as well. It was well organised. Background context: it was a party," commented another. "They gave them the stage and space to enjoy, so they are enjoying. Tourists go out to enjoy, to let their hair loose, away from judging known circle. Just be yourself and let others be themselves. If they are breaking rules, let them face the music. They are not kids of ur school," said one user.
New Indian Express
7 hours ago
- New Indian Express
Producer of multilingual superhit 'Eega' issues copyright infringement notice to Malayalam movie 'Lovely'
KOCHI: The producer of the 2012 superhit multilingual movie 'Eega', directed by noted filmmaker S S Rajamouli, has issued a copyright infringement notice to the recently released Malayalam film 'Lovely' for portraying a housefly as a character. The Hyderabad-based production company Vaaraahi Chalana Chitram, in a press release here, alleged the movie 'Lovely' has reproduced, appropriated and exploited the character of a housefly 'visually' and 'narratively' identical to the housefly protagonist in its 2012 film. However, the makers of the Malayalam 3D film have denied the charges and said they will face the case 'legally'. They maintain that the film tells the story of a young dreamer who is capable of conversing with a housefly. On the other hand, the film 'Eega' is a revenge drama in which a murdered man incarnates as a housefly to protect his lover and take revenge against the antagonist.
