This is Purvi Thacker and Sarah Munir, two New York-based journalists who have been best friends for six years now. Thacker is Indian, while Munir is Pakistani.
This December, Thacker is getting married to her long-time boyfriend Arjun Vatsa in Mumbai.
Munir was to be Thacker's maid of honour, but was denied her visa to India for unknown reasons.
Despondent that her best friend would not be there on the biggest day of her life, Thacker wrote a Facebook post pleading the internet to help spread the word. Since being posted, on November 1, the post has gone viral.
"That my best friend cannot be there for what will be my biggest day is something that I cannot come to terms with. Forget the hustling, the paperwork, the months of coordination and prayers- we didn't know that it would end with a rejection.
Sarah has visited India and I have visited Pakistan, where we have stayed with each other's families. Her ammi and abbu are like my own and her family and siblings are like my own and we have visited mosques, churches and temples together. It's not until our respective countries/governments remind us that it is unusual for us to be doing those things together that we think of each other as "Pakistani" or "Indian."
Thacker told BuzzFeed that she and Munir met in 2011, at Columbia grad school in New York, and that they have been inseparable ever since.
Thacker told BuzzFeed that Munir has visited Mumbai twice before and her visa has never been rejected before. She also added that there was no reason given for the rejection this time.
"We took to social media to vent and to share frustrations because we know that Sushma Swaraj helps people in these situations," she said.
And the internet has responded to Thacker's pleas. According to Thacker, the response has been overwhelming and shares of support having been pouring in on Twitter and Facebook.
"We didn't realise it would become such a big deal but we are now hoping this can spearhead a larger dialogue on what common people with friends across the border are going through," Thacker told BuzzFeed.
