The trio of besties played by Leslie Bibb, Carrie Coon, and Michelle Monaghan in The White Lotus.
Pic/Instagram @mslesliebibb
Season 3 of The White Lotus has given viewers plenty to talk about — the incestuous brothers, the anxious father, the scheming French femme fatale. But for some of us, the most unsettling plotline isn’t murder or mayhem. It’s the trio of vacationing childhood friends, played by Leslie Bibb (Kate), Carrie Coon (Laurie), and Michelle Monaghan (Jaclyn).
On paper, they have it all: sun, sand, cocktails, and attractive men. But beneath the glossy Instagram-potential surface, cracks quickly begin to show. What should have been a blissful reunion turns into a subtle competition, then an outright test of loyalty. Laurie and Jaclyn criticize Kate’s politics. Laurie and Kate gossip about Jaclyn’s habit of seeking validation from men. Kate and Jaclyn, in turn, roll their eyes at Laurie’s rut. Eventually, an argument over — predictably — men brings simmering tensions to a boil.
The storyline may be fictional, but the themes are all too real: how much resentment, jealousy, and bitterness can a friendship withstand before it fractures? How much are we truly willing to overlook in people we’ve known forever?
Here at Sunday mid-day, we’ve all been part of a controversial trio at some point — and we’ve lived to tell the tale. Here are a few of our “we survived it — so can you (or maybe not)” stories.
‘No Pictures, Just Food’
Carol, Reena, and I are what I call “intermittent friends.” We don’t meet often — months can go by without a get-together — but we keep in touch on WhatsApp, exchanging occasional updates about work and life.
When we do meet, we throw ourselves into it so completely that in all these years, we’ve never once taken a group photo. Not even a snapshot of our meals — and we’re foodies! The whole reason we became a trio in the first place was our shared passion for eating out. Long after we’d each moved on from the workplace where we met, we decided to explore a list of specific restaurants together. But when we meet, there’s no phone between us and the food — just conversation that roams across every topic imaginable.
— Vidya Heble
‘We Listen and We Don’t Judge’
My friend Nomeeta — an introvert by most people’s standards — likes to quote her husband: “Thank God you have your two best friends who keep you sane.” He’s right. The three of us — Nomeeta, Sukhmani, and I — have been inseparable since we were 15. That’s 27 years of friendship that’s survived different cities, careers, and time zones. Our WhatsApp group spans Mumbai, Delhi, and New Jersey, but it’s our emotional closeness that really holds us together.
The secret to our longevity? We’ve never allowed jealousy, FOMO, or comparison to creep in. We celebrate our differences, and we take genuine pride in each other’s successes. Whenever we meet, the first 20 minutes are devoted to spilling our deepest, most unfiltered feelings — no matter how controversial. And we know, without question, that none of us will judge the other. That safety net has made this a forever friendship.
— Aastha Atray Banan
‘Our One Rule Was No Backbiting’
When I first moved to this city, my two closest allies were my male best friends, A and S. We’d known each other since college, and together we were like eggs, butter, and toast — each good alone, but best together. Our friendship worked because we had both group chemistry and strong one-on-one bonds. We saw each other as a trio almost daily, but we also made time for individual hangouts once a week.
Our golden rule was simple but non-negotiable: no badmouthing a member of the group if they weren’t there to defend themselves. If something bothered you, you addressed it directly, one-on-one. That unspoken trust kept things healthy — and kept jealousy or FOMO from ever becoming an issue.
