19. MUMBAI DIARIES- PART 3

Monday, 25th May.

11:50a.m.

A slow morning at Nilofer’s house in Mumbai.

Sunlight falling softly through the window, Wish sitting near me like she owns the entire flat- which honestly, she does. Five days here already, and life has completely lost its routine. No alarms, no fixed plans, no rushing. Just random outings, late-night walks, sleeping at odd hours, endless conversations, and lazy afternoons. My regular life feels so far away from here. And may be that is why this trip feels so relaxing.

I will continue from where I had stopped that day.

Since Nilofer already knew that I was staying for 12 days, she had already planned everything beforehand. She knew how inconvenient it would be for me to constantly pull things out from my trolley every single day. So even before I arrived, she had already emptied one side of her bed box to make space for my clothes, skincare and my little things. These small gestures matter so much. They make you feel expected. Wanted. Comfortable.

I unpacked my things and arranged them there properly. Somehow, while folding my clothes into that little space, I already started feeling at home.

I freshened up quickly, and then we had lunch together. She had cooked dal, rice and chicken curry with leg pieces. Simple food but so delicious and comforting that it instantly filled both, my stomach and heart. Homemade food after traveling always feels different.

It was Wednesday, and Nilofer was working from home. So in between our nonstop conversations, she would suddenly pause, put on her serious office voice during meetings, and then immediately come back to gossiping with me the moment they ended. The entire afternoon passed like that- laughter, stories, tea breaks, office calls, and random discussions about life.

By evening, she took me to a cozy but very famous café in Bandra- Boojee Café. Apparently, it is one of Deepika Padukone’s favourite café too. The place was dimly lit and beautiful, with the smell of coffee and baked desserts floating in the air.

I ordered my regular favourite cold coffee, and we shared a Portobello Truffle Hashbrown. Absolutely yummylicious. We sat there for almost two and half hours, talking continuously without even realising how much time had passed. Some friendships are exactly like that- Effortless.

Around 10.30 at night, we stepped out of the café and walked all along Carter Road. The sea breeze felt calming against the warm Mumbai air. We kept looking at the buildings and discussing which Bollywood celebrity might be living where, imagining our favourite actors casually jogging on those same roads in oversized hoodies while nobody around cared. That is the charm of Mumbai. No one gets overly bothered. Everyone just lets people exist.

Even though it was late at night, the city still felt alive. Almost as if people work during the day and truly live during the night. There was something incredibly calming about it. Safe. Free. Clean roads, sea beside you, people walking around without fear. That is exactly why I love Mumbai so much. After walking and talking for hours, we finally took a rickshaw back home late at night. And of course, Wish was already waiting for us, probably annoyed because her dinner was delayed.

Like every time I visit Nilofer’s place, we slept together in the hall. She spread her mattress on the floor while I took over the sofa. The lights were off, but our conversations continued in the dark till almost 2:30 in the morning. One topic led to another, then another, and somewhere between laughter and half-finished sentences, we quietly fell asleep

Connect

contact@douxsourire.co.in

© 2025. All rights reserved.