Five Point Someone: What to do to write a good book

                        Finally, I have read a good book from Chetan Bhagat. The impossible has happened. But it's not very surprising. But more about that later. 

                    

                   Let me begin with the plot summary. Three new students at the most famous institution in India, bond over an escape from ragging. They then proceed to dismantle their lives with their stupid decisions. They decide fun over marks. They are not unintelligent of course, how could they have gotten into IIT otherwise? It's just that they are reluctant to blindly mug up the entire study material.

                         The reason I liked this book from the very beginning was that it didn't have any ultra pure characters. In Indian movies there is a need to show the hero as the guy who can do no wrong. This is a bloody stupid concept. They are not Gods. Heck! In Greek mythology, Gods make more mistakes than humans! But this book doesn't make that mistake. And hence, I love it.

                        Another important aspect of a hero is that he has to be the best looking person in the movie. Same applies to some book heroes as well. But no, in this book, Chetan Bhagat goes one step further. There is no hero in the first place. (The main narrator could be considered the hero as he is the only one to have a girlfriend but he is completely out of shape guy and not that handsome too.) There are only various perspectives. Of course, the major part of it was Hari's narration but the others' perspectives, though brief, are forceful. They make their point in a matter of a few words. The characters are all wonderfully flawed. None of them are too good to be true.

                     

                       Hari seems to take nothing seriously. His friend's mother's sob story is a becomes the butt of his jokes. But turns out his story is almost equally tragic. Ryan doesn't think twice before breaking into a Head of Department's office. He is apparently indifferent to his parents and their feelings but treasures each of their letters. Alok is shown as a wimp but he sacrifices all of his dreams for the betterment of his family. The book doesn't ask us to forgive their mistakes. They are laid out before us as a warning as the tagline of the book states: What not to do in IIT. The professors also almost admit their prejudice towards students based on their GPAs but then we are in for a rude shock. One of the most realistic books that I have ever read. Will definitely recommend all people irrespective of their ages to read it. It doesn't sugar coat facts. But then I have doubts regarding the use of memorising in IIT and how much it can help you score marks. An IIT Madras alumnus once told me the classes are conducted not for the sake of exams but to improve our knowledge. But then, I have not personally experienced it as Mr. Bhagat has so I can't really correct him. I love an element of surprise  in my book but that was kind of disturbed by the stupid movie adaptation that I have watched at least twice already.
                
                             The reason behind the difference in quality between Chetan Bhagat's earlier books and his newer ones like One Indian Girl is quite obvious. He has lost things to say in his book. So he has begun to take ideas from Bollywood and TV Soaps which end up as blockbusters when they are adapted into movies but turn out to be horrible books. But I am not going to rate this book based on Chetan Bhagat's later mistakes and am going to be very generous as usual because this book has all the elements that I look for in a decent book.  

So as usual, before the rating, a few quotes:

I was not all right, and it was her damn fault. But when a young girl asks a guy if he is all right, he can never admit he is not.

Many times, Americans hit civilian targets and people died and everything, and that was crap. I mean, the aid to IIT was fine, but how can you justify bombing kids? But then, Saddam was kind of this loser General anyway and apparently shot his own people when he was grumpy. Oh, it was impossible to take sides in the Gulf war. And it was all pointless for us anyway. These guys would realize this soon.

“So you guys serious?” “Serious about what?” “I don’t know, like you love her and everything?” “I don’t know,” I said. That is how men talk about their relationships. Nobody knows anything – neither the questioner nor the answerer.

I don’t think this Ryan guy is all that cool. Wears branded clothes, but that is only because his parents are loaded. I personally think behind all this guy’s aggression there is a vacuum.

I saw Neha. She had come with her father, and sat primly with other faculty families. I waved to her and ten other profs waved back.

Now for the rating:

8/10 - Very Good