The four of us— best friends from school, college and work—met after a long time, though it didn’t feel like we’d missed a single beat. We came together, all decked out, at the beautiful wedding reception of Kashmira’s son; she’s standing on the far right in the picture. Next to the mother of the groom is me, Parizad, with Farida and Prema.   We were so excited about the evening and the chance to catch up that Farida, Prema and I even decided to time our entrance—but we almo

Until the turn of this century, nostalgia—a sentimental longing for something good that happened in our past—often dominated...