Feeling lonely? Why not Cuddll?

Imagine being fresh out of college, with a brand new job in a strange new city.

Then imagine that the only space where you can stay in the strange new city is a hostel at such a short notice is in the outskirts. A friendly stray dog and the kirana store owner are the only people you are happy to see you every day. You have no friends, actually you don’t even have any acquaintances and on top of that you are almost broke because your first salary is yet to come in. So it is impossible to go to the club or even out for a nice dinner.

This was me in 2013 and the city was Bangalore. I didn’t know any place in Bangalore besides my hostel address and my office of course, I knew two words of the local language ‘kannada gothila’ (I don’t speak Kannada) and was very lonely. Sure, the dating apps were available but they tend to be a little creepy and the amount of effort it took to sort the good from the bad was not something I had the energy to bother with.

Things improved after the first few months, office colleagues warmed up to me and we hung out every now and then. But what I was dying to do was to explore the city, have somebody tell me what places to visit and just have bunch of people to talk with on interesting topics.

My sister and my bestie faced the same experience when they moved to Pune just last year. They had each other for a while but they were two different people and things wouldn’t end well.

Let’s forget about moving into a new city and not knowing anyone for a bit. I am living in the city that I have been born and brought up in and I like meeting new people with similar interests.

HOWEVER

The club isn’t the best place to find a friend
And the bar I hate to go
Me and me alone at the table doing chocolate milkshake shots
Drinking fast and then we stare into the space

If I had written Shape of you, these would be my lyrics.

I guess we are slowly becoming a lonely generation and despite being hyper connected on social media, what most of us crave is meeting people one on one for genuine conversations.

Think about it; where can you make friends these days? You end up being restricted to office colleagues or the people you have grown up with or have been college to. Where can you find someone to dazzle with your fab personality or someone who can just lend a fresh perspective to your life? Social media is one possible place but I have encountered a fair share of creeps along with some genuinely nice people. Which other option do the lonely men and women like me have?

The answer? It lies in a cuddll. No, really it does! I am not kidding.

Cuddll, a shiny new app that I have just signed up on helps people  discover and meet new and like-minded people. You can sign up for a ‘Cuddll’ (an informal gathering) as well as chat with people to understand them better.

The best things in life are free and so is Cuddll. I have realized that group activities and one on one conversations (depending on what you are in the mood for) helps make strangers become acquaintances and acquaintances become friends. I love the fact that it allows me to let go of the pressure of looking in a certain way or swiping people right and left just on the basis of a photograph. There is so much to friendship and love than just a glance right?

Top 3 reasons why you should get on Cuddll? I have highlighted a few already but here you go!

i) Who doesn’t love a Cuddll?

I love a cuddll and I can cuddll all day. I would also love to Cuddll on the weekends and not stay stuck at home because:

i) Friend 1 cancelled the plans last minute

ii) Friend 2 is not that interested in getting up in the morning for a trek

iii) Colleague 1 suddenly fell ‘sick’

Nope, the best-laid plans are often tossed out of the window for various reasons. I am past the stage now and I think I deserve a reliable Cuddll!

ii) Safety and privacy

A Cuddll can be open, closed or private depending on what you are comfortable with. You can view all the open Cuddll’s and join the one that catches your fancy. You also have the option to create your own Cuddll’s. Everybody who has signed up on the app has to verify their phone number and their email id within 48 hours post which their account will be deleted. I must say this feature makes me happy because no matter what app you are on, safety is always a top priority

iii) User-friendly

The app has several features and I am sure you will enjoy discovering all of them on your own but I want to highlight a couple of them.

Their filters: They allow you to choose events according to your interests, the date timing and so on so that you have all the flexibility in the world. They have everything from sports to travelling to volunteering or just plain ol’ chilling. I know that my first Cuddll would be chilling 🙂

Conversations: I love to yap on apps and Cuddll allows you to have conversations with people before you join a meet up.

BTW, I was going through the different filters on Cuddll and I saw something that made my heart leap me with joy. They had a filter for social workers! Social workers! Social workers! I know I said it thrice but I am super excited about the range of options they have and the fact that they included my profession!

So, what do you think about Cuddll? Would you like to Cuddll next weekend? Sign up on the app now 🙂