Movies, Web Shows That Reveal the True Meaning of Friendship

Zoya Akhtar's 'ZNMD' follows the coming-of-age stories of three close friends- Kabir Dewan(Abhay Deol), Arjun Saluja (Hrithik Roshan), and Imraan Qureshi (Farhan Akhtar) as they go to Spain on what is ostensibly a bachelor's trip but ends up making them relive their wonder years, resolve personal dilemmas and seek and find love and forgiveness. Arjun's rises above his grudge against Imran, and transforms from an uptight, joyless workaholic into a free-spirited man in love, while Kabir learns that sometimes saying 'No' to a commitment is an act of courage as well. The flippant Imran resolves his daddy issues, discovers humility and also possibly a lasting soul connection with a girl. It all boils down to how they support and help each other solve their inner turmoils. If this isn't true friendship, then what is?

Here's another wholesome and memorable take on friendship. Featuring Sushant Singh Rajput, Shraddha Kapoor, Varun Sharma, Tahir Raj Bhasin, Naveen Polishetty, and Tushar Pandey in lead roles, the film revolves around middle-aged divorcee Aniruddh, AKA "Anni" Pathak, whose son attempts suicide upon failing the JEE entrance exam. He survives but begins to worry about being called a loser. During the course of this story, Anni describes how he and his five friends were also labelled as 'losers' in college and how they managed to remove that 'tag'. This bitter-sweet tale about how true friends support us through setbacks to do better and be better is directed by Nitesh Tiwari.

What happens when third year students of an engineering college, who once behaved like the residents of the Planet of Apes, begin to evolve ? As a punchline in the show's trailer puts it, "Hostel life is neither like Hirani's 'Three Idiots' nor like Kjo's 'Student of the Year', or like Anurag Kashyap's 'Gulaal.'' It is a coming of age experience that almost always throws up new challenges every day. The story follows the journey of four hostel-mates Ankit, Chirag, Jaat, and Jhantoo trying to find themselves through three dizzying seasons of 15 episodes each. While one finds his passion, the other realizes the difficulties of being away from home. Some find love, and some become unexpected friends. The series stars Adarsh Gourav, Badri Chavan, Sanchay Goswami, Ahsaas Channa, Nidhi Bisht, Ranjan Raj, and more. Stream it on Amazon Prime Video.

Streaming on Netflix, the superhit web series is a must-watch as it offers a realistic insight into the coaching culture of Kota, Rajasthan which has become an educational hub for IIT aspirants. Through the eyes of 16-year-old Vaibhav (Mayur More) , a small town boy from Itarsi whose future depends on getting admission into the Indian Institute of Technology, the show tries to show that there is more to Kota than what is commonly perceived. It also portrays the friendships, love, and camaraderie among the other classmates. It stars Jitendra Kumar, Ahsaas Channa, Alam Khan, Ranjan Raj, Revathi Pillai and Urvi Singh. Stream Season 1 on TVFPlay and YouTube and Season 2 on Netflix.

This Tigmanshi Dhulia directorial is a cracker of a film that begins in 1975, the same year that 'Sholay' was released and the friendship of Jai and Veeru became iconic. The film revolves around 'Chaukdi Gang,' a group of four friends brought together by fate in a web of crime, retribution and redemption. They are then torn apart and their lives take them in different directions only to then bring them back together years later when one of the friends is arrested by the police. The film stars Vidyut Jammwal, Shruti Haasan, Amit Sadh, Vijay Varma, Kenny Basumatary and Ankur Vikal and is an official remake of the 2011 French film 'A Gang Story.' Watch it on Zee5.

If you have never been to a girl's hostel, let us paint you a picture. Shared rooms, corridor chatter, long queues outside bathrooms, girl fights, a surly warden and sneaking out to meet guys. All this and more can be relished in the three seasons of this Sony Liv show that stars Ahsaas Channa, Parul Gulati, Srishti Shrivastava, Simran Natekar, Shreya Mehta, Trupti Khamkar, and more. "There is a difference between making noise and raising your voice," says a protagonist in the show as the show smoothly blends entertainment with political awareness and keeps you riveted with its crisp writing and impactful performances.