Adopted From India And Raised In Netherlands, 2 Childhood Friends Discover They Are Sisters

Two childhood friends who met as teenagers in the Netherlands have discovered, nearly three decades later, that they are biological sisters. According to a Reuters report, Meena Geltink and Minal Tijssen were both left as infants at an orphanage in India nearly 40 years ago before being adopted by different families in the Netherlands. They grew up about 100 miles (160 km) apart, unaware that they had a sister living nearby.

As per the report, the two first met in 1996 at a gathering for adopted children. They immediately felt a strong connection, while friends also noticed how much they looked alike. The girls exchanged addresses and stayed in touch for a while, even jokingly calling each other "sis".

They eventually lost contact for about 15 years.

Now 44 and living in France with her partner and two sons, Minal got the results of a MyHeritage DNA test in April while sitting on her couch at home. To her surprise, the DNA test returned a 100% sibling match with Meena, New York Post reported. 

At first, Minal did not realise the match was the same girl she had met as a teenager.

"I couldn't believe it," she said. She eventually found Meena on social media and recognised her from old photographs.

While both women had grown up in loving adoptive families, they said they had also carried questions and a sense of something missing about their biological identities. When they reunited in the Netherlands after the DNA results, the sisters hugged, laughed and cried together. They also took their first selfie as sisters.

“When I see you, it's like I'm home. For years, I felt ‌a hole in my heart. It's like a missing ‌puzzle piece has been found," Meena remarked. 

"We were friends before we were sisters. We were sisters the whole time, but we didn't know," Minal added.