In defense of Chetan Bhagat

A lot has been said and discussed already. My viewpoints –

• Why on earth did Mr. Bhagat sign such a stupid deal that would allow the movie makers to use his name in the credit whenever they wish to?
• The movie-makers cannot deny that they have copied several plots. You have changed the packaging and many parts of the story, doesn’t make it entirely different. Give credit where it is due.
• Aamir Khan(the bollywood herowhom I like the most) says that Mr. Bhagat is only trying to sell more copies of 5 points sum1. For your kind information Sir, the book has been a national bestseller! His books sell like pancakes. He don’t need any movie to enhance his already advanced reputation.
• If Mukesh Ambani can be thanked for using IIM-B campus for the shooting, why not Mr. Bhagt for his story? Even IIM-B hasn’t been copied or shown as itself. It has been made into another imaginery institute, but he gets the credit in the beginning don’t he?
• Being a novice writer myself (a blog + 2 published articles) appreciation matters more than money. At least I’ve learnt my lesson that I won’t sell my novels without strict terms and conditions. (A touch bit arrogant am I not? But hell yeah I wil not stop from boasting my ambitions anymore)

And yeah, I met Mr. Bhagat himself!! He seemed pretty tensed when I met him and of all places at the ISKCON temple in Chowpatty.

Following are the excerpts from our brief conversations -

Me{quivering, starry-eyed & nervous}: Excuse me Mr. Bhagat?

Chetan Bhagat{breaks into a smile}: Yes?

Me: I just wanted to wish you good-luck in the ordeal you’re going through.

CB: Oh no, no! It’s all done. People know where the story is from. I wrote in my blog today, no more interviews, nothing more to be said. Did you read my blog?

Me: I didn’t read your blog but I follow you on twitter.

CB: Ive written that Lord Krishna is on my side and that’s it.

Me: Well I’ve read the book and also watched the movie. There are too many similarities to dissociate the two. {Breaking into a grin} I am a fan of yours.

CB: Oh what’s your name?

Me: Anirudh

CB: Oh hello, and this is Anusha. {I nod my head and smile. I was about to say “I’ve heard so much about you finally I am seeing you” But i preferred shutting up. Nervous as I still was. She goes ahead with the kids.}

CB: Anyways nothing much left to be done, it’s pretty clear that 70% of it is my script. And they claim they haven’t even read my book

Me: Yes and what’s even more baseless is the fact that Aamir Khan(he raised his eyebrows) says that you’re doing this to increase the sales of 5 point sum1, which has already been a best-seller.

CB{smiles}: Anyways now let’s see what happens .

Me{grinning bashfully}: Yeah. All the best, and I’m praying for you.

For the next few hours I was grinning away to myself. I don’t care even if he is raising this issues for selfish reasons. 5 point sum1 brought a fresh appeal in story-writing which then inspired 3 idiots. Both are amazing contributions to the reading and movie-making faculties respectively. I hope this controversy dies down soon and both Mr. Bhagat and the Mr. Hirani spin-off splendid stuff in the future.

Coming up next post:
My counter view to Mr. Swaminathan Aiyar’s predictions for 2020.