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The New York Times calls him ‘The biggest-selling English-language novelist in India’s history’ and the International Herald Tribune says ‘…Bhagat has touched a nerve with young Indian readers and acquired almost cult status.’ Chetan Bhagat, since the debut of his first novel in 2004, has become a name to reckon with in India, not only as a novelist but also as a youth icon. With his fourth book, 2 States – The Story of My Marriage just released, his popularity is continuing to shoot up. “Chetan Bhagat has made it really big these days. He’s everywhere, on the internet; TV; newspapers; and with movies also being made on his books, he’s hit the jackpot. I guess people on the streets know him better than the president of our country!” jokes Chetan, an engineering student, who shares his first name with the writer.

Born in 1974, the 35 year old has quite a formidable academic background, an alumnus of IIT-Delhi and IIM-A, he had all the makings of becoming a corporate head honcho. But he took a plunge into writing while still working as an investment banker in Hong Kong. ‘Five Point Someone –What not to do at IIT’ was released in 2004 and is, arguably, his most famous book. “Five Point Someone is Chetan Bhagat’s best work because it has real-like characters spun around very relatable subjects. Every rebel saw a Ryan in himself and likewise, a Hari or an Alok. The best part about the book is that it’s a fun, light hearted and an optimistic story with a dash of romance and a lot of vodka!” says Nithya, who has read all of Bhagat’s books. Over the years, Bhagat has ventured into other fields as well. He is a regular columnist with Times of India and Dainik Bhaskar and is also a guest speaker at many institutions across the country. The links to all his columns can be found at his official website, www.chetanbhagat.com/.

His previous novels. Credits: RougeWave

A lot of reasons can be attributed to the transformation of Chetan Bhagat from a banker to a very successful novelist. The fact that some of his books are based, to an extent, on his life has drawn a lot of readers. His writings also closely portray the people and their lives in modern India, making them very relatable to the masses. “Even if the main characters and some of the situations in Bhagat’s books are predictable, it’s very easy to connect and empathise with the characters because a lot of us find ourselves in similar circumstances as mentioned in the books,” says Nitin, a Bhagat fan. “His books are also very addictive primarily because his narrative style is fairly simple. And the lingo is very close to what we use in real life; his books don’t have me running for the dictionary every two seconds,” he adds. Priced at Rs. 95 by the publishers Rupa, all the four of his books have sold huge numbers of copies largely thanks to the affordable price. Most of the students agree to the fact that being modestly priced is a major reason for them to want to buy these books first hand as they don’t empty their pockets.

This is not to say that the whole country adores Chetan Bhagat and his novels. Like everything else, this also has a flip side and there are people aren’t terribly impressed with the hugely popular novelist. “I hate it when people say Chetan Bhagat is their favourite writer and his books are the best they’ve ever read. It’s more like they’re the only books they’ve ever read. They think Chetan Bhagat comprises of everything that Indian English literature or for that matter World literature has to offer,” fumes Snigdha at the craze over Bhagat’s books. Another reason for scorn is that the books are high on the drama quotient. “Every book of his is filled with melodrama. It’s like reading a Bollywood movie. Just when you’re beginning to think that a book is a little realistic, the exaggeration hits you. Why read it, when you can watch it?”questions Shyam, who obviously doesn’t root for Mr. Bhagat.

The 3 Idiots website. Credits:www.idiotsacademy.zapak.com/

“I think it’s great that Chetan Bhagat’s books are being made into movies. I’m sure there are people who’d appreciate reading the books more than the movies but for a non-reader like me, I’d rather watch an adaptation of the book on screen than read it. I’ve been waiting for 3 Idiots to come out for a long time now. With Amir Khan in it and Rajkumar Hirani having had directed it, I’m sure they would have done justice to the book,” says Karuna when asked about what she thought of Chetan Bhagat’s books being made into movies. While 3 Idiots is generating a lot of interest among the crowds, the Salman Khan starrer Hello, an adaptation of ‘One Night @ the Call Center’, did not do too well at the box-office. “I went to the movie after having read One Night, and was kinda disappointed,” says Kiran about the movie. “The actors didn’t really do justice to their roles and important portions of the book were missing. The movie had its moments here and there, but it wasn’t as racy as the book. And the unnecessary songs got on to my nerves!” he further adds.

Nothing is currently known about Chetan Bhagat’s next venture but unfortunately for people complaining about an overdose of the ‘youth icon’, looks like there’s no way out. One will only get to see more of this investment banker-turned-novelist in the future, a reason for the fans to rejoice. Whatever one thinks of him and his works, he perfectly fall into the cliché of ‘Love him or hate him, you can’t ignore him!’