International Day of Friendship: Mumbaikars reveal favourite addas to hangout with friends

Cyrus Broacha and Kunal Vijayakar

Homies for life

The duo met for the first time on the sets of a children's play in 1991, recalls Vijayakar. "We found common interests in food and comedy," he adds. From driving through the town on night-outs, to relaxing at each other's places, they have grown old together. "Of course not," Broacha jokes, "Kunal has issues. You must ignore what he says," he says with mock sincerity. "He still hangs out at my house too much. He just won't leave,"
Broacha laughs.

Our fave addas: The Ghetto at Breach Candy; Copacabana in Juhu for the vibe; Cafe Olympia in Colaba for its bheja fry.

Cyrus Broacha and Kunal Vijayakar, television personalities

Banter all around

For Aditi Mittal, Jeeya Sethi has been among her oldest friends in the industry. "We are brutally honest with each other. We often spend time just pulling each other's legs," she says. No comedy talk, Sethi reveals, adding, "When we hang out, we are a couple of normal friends having fun."

Our fave addas: Long walks at Carter Road, Ministry of Crab in Khar for its food, Ikea in Worli for a bit of timepass.

Aditi Mittal and Jeeya Sethi, stand-up comics

A comfortable vibe

For restaurateur and owner of Café Madras, Devavrat Kamath, college years were about finding a space of your own. He still finds time for his old friends, Vikram Nanawadikar, Francis Mel, Gautam Bir Singh, Porus Satwe and Nikhil Moorthy AKA Nikso, among
others. "We would always hang out in familiar spaces. such as Cafe Mondegar. Food was important, but it was all about the comfortable vibe of the place," he shares.

(From left) Porus Satwe, Devavrat Kamath and Francis Mel

Our fave addas: Cafe Mondegar (left) in Colaba; Toto's and Soul Fry in Bandra for weekly karaoke sessions.

Devavrat Kamath, restaurateur

Cinephiles all the way

(From left) Loy Mendonsa, Ehsaan Noorani and Shankar Mahadevan

For Hindi cinema's melodic triumvirate of Shankar-Ehsaan-Loy, the studio is the eternal hangout space. "Once out of the studio, we are all in a different zone," admits Noorani. Of the trio, Mahadevan remains the foodie. With Mendonsa, Noorani shares a common love for science and history. "We occasionally catch movies in theatres. Even this weekend, we were trying to get tickets for Oppenheimer. We just couldn't get it," he reveals.

Our fave addas: Palladium in Lower Parel for a casual movie and shopping evening.

Ehsaan Noorani, composer

Theatre call

(From left) Nadir Khan, Vivek Madan, Arghya Lahiri, Vivek Rao, Toral Shah and Quasar Thakore Padamsee

"We make friends across sections," admits theatremaker Quasar Thakore Padamsee. From schoolmates to theatre peers, his circle is a large one including theatremakers Nadir Khan, Toral Shah and Arghya Lahiri. "The standard hangout place back in college was my mother's [Dolly Thakore] drawing room. Some of our best ideas have come there," he reminisces. Then, there were the old haunts of The Ghetto, Prithvi Theatre and NCPA. "Playwrights rarely chat about work. Our conversation is about everything else," he reveals.

Our fave addas: Road House Bluez in Azad Nagar, Andheri for the vibe; Harkat Studios and Kitabkhana, Fort for some literary takeaways.

Quasar Thakore Padamsee, theatremaker

Circles of literature

Jehangir Art Gallery. Pics Courtesy/Wikimedia Commons; (inset) Ranjit Hoskote

For poet Ranjit Hoskote, Mumbai has always been a city of literary circles. "From Arundhati Subramaniam and Sampurna Chattarji to Mustansir Dalvi, we all were part of a convergence. Some, I have known for a long period from my student days to others from literary connections," he reveals, adding, "You would have a reading, wander off to a café and sit there for hours. It was often an urban event," he laughs.

Our fave addas: Jehangir Art Gallery, The Artist's Centre at Kala Ghoda; Stadium in Churchgate and The Wayside Inn, Kala Ghoda (now shut) for
the conversations.

Ranjit Hoskote, poet, cultural theorist