Connecting like-hearted people to share life experiences

Set up in 2021, Stranger Conversations has held over 250 activities in the past year alone

- Fatimah Mujibah

She had, in her own words, the "perfect Singaporean life" - a stable job, a Housing Board flat and a long-term relationship. But deep inside, Ms June Tan still felt unfulfilled, and like she was living a life that was not her own.

"It looked good only on paper, not in reality," said the 33-year-old. So she decided to make a change. In 2022, she upped and left Singapore after leaving her job as a tutor, ending things with her partner of seven years and returning the flat.

She took the plunge despite not having a concrete plan in mind and, three years on, has travelled to 70 countries - which included eight months backpacking solo in South America, and landing a job as an expedition guide working in Antarctica.

In June 2025, Ms Tan also became an accidental speaker.

Through friends who had attended earlier events, she discovered Stranger Conversations in August 2024, a social mixer series that struck her as a space where open-minded, like-hearted individuals could come together and share their life experiences.

After attending an event, she went on to host two Stranger Conversations sessions, which garnered over 30 attendees each.

Ms Tan said: "Stranger Conversations felt very different from the typical commercial or transactional social spaces we often see in Singapore. (The conversations) weren't about shopping or catching a movie."

The platform was created for people who wanted to engage in more "unconventional" exchanges, said its founder Ang Jin Shaun.

"People are so comfortable relating to everyday and simpler topics like applying for a BTO (Build-To-Order) flat or where the next latest cafe is opening," he said.

"We wanted to have a place for different perspectives to come together and opportunities for cross-pollination."