Five point someone and 3 idiots

Everyone from good friends to the kids in my class told me that I must watch 3 idiots. It has a message, they said.

What, I asked.

We should do what we love to do, success will follow, they said.

Now, any person who has spent time writing a novel does not need a movie to tell her this. In fact, she still does things she loves to, and doesn't care if success follows or will follow or lag behind and take a different turn.

But the hype was too much. The controversy too unnerving.

Chetan Bhagat is one of my favorite writers. And I don't think his writing is simplistic, I find a lot of depth in his books.

In his latest book, Two States, the conflict is resolved when the parents get together and accept their children's love for each other, across two states.

During the wedding ceremony, the father of the bride is questioned by a gossip monger, ' Youngsters these days, they make their own decisions, and we feel so left out from their lives, isn't it ?'

Dad replies, 'I don't see it that way. The love they give each other, that capacity to love another human being, is in fact an extension of our love for them, isn't it?'

I found this overflowing with healing, for it works both ways.

Coming back to 3 idiots, I could not enjoy the movie. I happen to be trained in film making, and the book is too alive within me, as a film and as a book. Comparisons are inevitable, the barefoot on car brake too unforgettable an image to be sacrificed.

Actually, the problem is not changing a few scenes here and there. Rajkumar Hirani took the soul-flow out of the book, and just used the carcass. If he has so much talent, why could he not furnish a new backbone for his story?

Why is integrity so out of fashion in the film industry?

I am so heartbroken that I dont have the words to console Chetan Bhagat.

A flute, a song, and some words

The mumbai launch of A Grasshopper's Pilgrimage happened day before yesterday. The reason why I havent blogged it yet was I was waiting for some exclusive snaps .

This hug by Chetan was his hello to me. Chetan was really natural at the discussion on the dias.

He asked me a few questions which I answered the classical spiritual way: I dont know.

So I will answer them now.

'This book,' he said, 'read very well. It was really interesting to see how a woman's mind jumps around. You know, it is a big mystery. How does a womans mind actually work? Or why is a woman like this? So unpredictable?'

'I dont have the faintest idea, Chetan.' -is what I said.

------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

this is what I should have said:

'Once, there was a man who opened a bottle and out popped a genie.

'Ask for a boon. Whatever you want.' the genie said to the man.

The man thought for a while and replied,

'You know, I have this fear of flying, and I just cant get myself on a plane, because of which I lose a lot of buiseness. It would be so convienient if you could make a nice long flyover from Mumbai to Calcutta, where only I can drive.'

'A flyover from Mumbai to Cal? Are you mad? Do you know how much work that is? How many bories of cement? Please, can you please ask for something else? ' said the stressed out genie.

'Ok, cool, no worries. Here is my second request. You know, I have been married twice and I still cant figure out how a womans mind works. Can you like give me a map, a guideline of how a woman might behave in different circumstances?'

The genie thought deeply for a while and answered , 'This flyover you wanted, do you want a double lane one or a single lane will do?'

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On a serious note, though, I dont identify myself too much with being a woman, so I really didnt have an answer to this question, Chetan.

This pic below is the proof of the launch. The shortest one in the center is me. On my left is Chetan Bhagat, on his left is Rajat kapoor. On my right is Tisca Chopra and then Purab Kohli. We are all holding copies of the Grashopper.

'This is how a book launch should be.' was a comment from Chetan that was an icing on the cake.

More pics will be uploaded as soon as I get them.

Meanwhile read this article about a barefoot grasshopper that appeared in mid-day.

Grasshopper to launch in Mumbai

A Grasshopper's Pilgrimage,

to be launched in Mumbai

on 15th April

7 pm,

at the Juhu Crossword Book Store

by Chetan Bhagat!

All are welcome.

(A special invite to all those who have read the book. It will be fun to talk to you.)

A review in the Telegraph of Calcutta, begins like this:

A Grasshopper’s Pilgrimage (Rupa, Rs 150) by Manjushree Abhinav begins with a tall list of thank-yous that includes family members, the pet dog, the Muse and even the tree that gave its “life to make the pages of this book”. Such piety coexists with whacky humour, chick-lit oomph and beady-eyed dreams throughout the book .

Read the rest of it here.

'Hello', a review

Ok, I will start from the beginning. I clapped when Chetan Bhagat's name was the first on screen. The kid was scandalized and he tried to stop me. (I am going to have to send him to the Film Institute to learn to yell in a theater.) How nice, I thought, finally a writer gets his due.
And there the happiness ended.

Why is it always so painful, right from Gone with the wind, to Bridgett Jones Diary, to watch a film and have the story constantly conflicting with the audio visuals? Why cant I let go ? Or, why doesn't the book let go? In fact, it is the film maker inside who has a strong sense of good and bad. Who is alive, and kicking. So, good, kick away ma'am.

The book, One night at a call center, (on which this film is based), starts with Chetan himself, a successful writer who meets a beautiful woman on a train journey from Ahmedabad to New Delhi (or was it Mumbai?) and she tells him the entire story. Train, night journey, writer, meeting a stranger, all very cinematic, very romantic elements. All squashed.

Writer is a rock star, or is he a film star, or is he a film maker? Its Salman Khan, coming off a helicopter, and taking off his shirt (not again!) for the party number. And the meeting happens in front of a helicopter showroom, with four bodyguards guarding the hero. Dhat teri, Chetan! You wrote this script?

The rest of the film was okay, but my heart was elsewhere. My heart was in black and white cinema, where they take the couple on a boat with the moonlight and create an intensity stronger than color. I cried for today's generation who works in artificial lights instead of vitamin A (sunlight). I ached for some mountains and fresh air, at least on the screen. I craved for tall people, for handsome men, for a real fist fight. These guys on the screen were too much like us. They reminded me of my malnourished self, the one that goes to an office, or smiles at her boss, or throws things around when angry.

'Are we watching a TV serial? On a big screen?' Hubby asked me, during interval.

'If it was a TV serial, you wouldn't have needed to shut the kids eyes during the love making scene,' I told him.

The last straw came when God's voice was male. Now I am no feminist, but this was an element that had troubled me in the book. The book got away with being vague about God's sex, at least during the phone call. I was willing to bet it would be a female voice, because the writer is met by a woman on the train. Even in the film, Katrina Kaif is a woman, right? Chauvinist pigs, you Hello makers. What would have gone of your father, if for once you did something for your mother?

Of course, what God said didn't turn me on, either. No Advaita, only positive thinking, and encouragement. Sillier than the self help books.

And if you have the guts to show god in your film, why does the reaction to discovering that she is a god have to be so cool? Like, sure, Salmaan is so sexy that goddesses comes to tell him stories and then do the vanishing act once every fortnight. Or does he have a low blood count?

Anyway, here is the trailer.

And this is Chetan's response to the reviews of Hello.

I write to heal my childhood wounds

'Hi, Latu. Did you read my latest post?' I ask my sis on the phone.

'Do you know why you are so broke, why you don't have a proper job?' she asks.

I think I know what she is going to say. 'Because you are obsessed with your blog. You need a shrink. Please get cured. Stop blogging.'

'Too late. Wild horses wont take me away from the key board.' I respond.

Today was my weekly creative writing class. Out of twelve students, three were absent. When I told them that instead of the movie in the afternoon, we are going to clear the backlog of previous writing assignments, two of them developed health problems by lunch. By tea-time, a boy was suddenly called for an appointment by his doctor, across town. His girlfriend sneaked out with him.

So it was an intimate group of writers that stayed back for the last one hour. I asked them, 'Why do you write? Do you know?'

'I write for the satisfaction I get when I express myself.' she said.

'Why do you need to express yourself?' I probed.

'I don't know and I don't think its necessarily to know this. I just like to write so I write.'

'Fair enough. And why do you write?'

'I write when the milk boils over with emotions.'

'Hmm.'

'I am an emotional person and I like to arouse the same emotion in the other.'

'Yes.'

And then I cycle back home, open my blog, scroll down the fellows, and find Chetan Bhagat's post. 'I write to heal my childhood wounds', he says.

'Writing is about thinking. I write to gain perspective.' says Amandeep Sandhu.

'Asking whether you have got it, whether you should stick with writing or quit, is like asking if you should continue living. For most writers, being unable to write is tantamount to suicide.' says Betsy Lerner, in her beautiful bible for writers, 'The forest for the trees'.

'The natural writer is the one who is always writing, if only in his head-sizing up a situation for material, collecting impressions,' she continues, speaking for James Thurber, 'I never quite know when I am not writing. Sometimes my wife comes up to me at a party and says, 'Dammit, Thurber, stop writing.' She usually catches me in the middle of a paragraph.'

Enough about others. Why do I write?
. . . .
. . .
. . .

Maybe one day, I will become articulate enough to answer this question. May that day never come, for Khalil Gibran has already given me an answer, one that beats all logic.

Ask not for a reason to love, for love is sufficient unto love.

Gothim

Yes! I stumbled across Chetan Bhagat's blog while looking for his photographs to pirate and upload on the sparks post below.

He has been blogging for not so long, since April, and it looks like a blog meant to promote his latest novel, 'three mistakes...'.

However, it also has some nice lines, which touched my writer's heart, 'The idea of writing is to express, not to impress.'

And for the first time, I am looking forward to a movie because it has been written by someone, rather than directed, acted, by so and so.

Here is a trailer of Hello, a film soon to be released, based on his second book, 'One Night at a call center.' Its a pity Katrina plays the Goddess. Should have been me. ;)

Chetan Bhagat 's sparks to light up your day

I wish I had the video, but words are a writers best weapon, so here goes:

Inaugural Speech by Mr.Chetan Bhagat for the new batch at the Symbiosis BBA program 2008..

Keep the Spark

Good Morning everyone and thank you for giving me this chance to speak to you. This day is about you. You, who have come to this college, leaving the comfort of your homes (or in some cases discomfort), to become something in your life. I am sure you are excited.. There are few days in human life when one is truly elated. The first day in college is one of them. When you were getting ready today, you felt a tingling in your stomach. What would the auditorium be like, what would the teachers be like, who are my new classmates - there is so much to be curious about. I call this excitement, the spark within you that makes you feel truly alive today. Today I am going to talk about keeping the spark shining. Or to put it another way, how to be happy most, if not all the time.

Where do these

sparks start? I think we are born with them. My 3-year old twin boys have a million sparks. A little Spiderman toy can make them jump on the bed. They get thrills from creaky swings in the park. A story from daddy gets them excited. They do a daily countdown for birthday party – several months in advance – just for the day they will cut their own birthday cake.

I see students like you, and I still see some sparks.. But when I see older people, the spark is difficult to find.. That means as we age, the spark fades. People whose spark has faded too much are dull, dejected,aimless and bitter. Remember Kareena in the first half of Jab We Met vs the second half? That is what happens when the spark is lost. So how to save the spark?

Imagine the spark to be a lamp's flame. The first aspect is nurturing - to give your spark the fuel, continuously. The second is to guard against storms.

To nurture, always have goals.

It is human nature to strive, improve and achieve full potential. In fact, that is success. It is what is possible for you. It isn't any external measure - a certain cost to company pay package, a particular car or house.

Most of us are from middle class families. To us, having material landmarks is success and rightly so. When you have grown up where money constraints force everyday choices, financial freedom is a big achievement.

But it isn't the purpose of life. If that was the case, Mr Ambani would not show up for work. Shah Rukh Khan would stay at home and not dance anymore. Steve Jobs won't be working hard to make a better iPhone, as he sold Pixar for billions of dollars already. Why do they do it? What makes them come to work everyday?

They do it because it makes them happy. They do it because it makes them feel alive. Just getting better from current levels feels good. If you study hard, you can improve your rank. If you make an effort to interact with people, you will do better in interviews. If you practise, your cricket will get better. You may also know that you cannot become Tendulkar, yet. But you can get to the next level. Striving for that next level is important.

Nature designed with a random set of genes and circumstances in which we were born. To be happy, we have to accept it and make the most of nature's design. Are you? Goals will help you do that.

I must add,

don't just have career or academic goals.. Set goals to give you a balanced, successful life. I use the word balanced before successful. Balanced means ensuring your health, relationships, mental peace are all in good order.

There is no point of getting a promotion on the day of your breakup. There is no fun in driving a car if your back hurts. Shopping is not enjoyable if your mind is full of tensions.

You must have read some quotes - Life is a tough race, it is a marathon or whatever.. No, from what I have seen so far, life is one of those races in nursery school. Where you have to run with a marble in a spoon kept in your mouth. If the marble falls, there is no point coming first. Same with life, where health and relationships are the marble. Your striving is only worth it if there is harmony in your life. Else, you may achieve the success, but this spark, this feeling of being excited and alive, will start to die.

One last thing about nurturing the spark - don't take life seriously

. One of my yoga teachers used to make students laugh during classes. One student asked him if these jokes would take away something from the yoga practice. The teacher said - don't be serious, be sincere. This quote has defined my work ever since. Whether it's my writing, my job, my relationships or any of my goals. I get thousands of opinions on my writing everyday. There are heaps of praise, there is intense criticism. If I take it all seriously, how will I write? Or rather, how will I live? Life is not to be taken seriously, as we are really temporary here. We are like a pre-paid card with limited validity. If we are lucky, we may last another 50 years. And 50 years is just 2,500 weekends. Do we really need to get so worked up? It's ok, bunk a few classes, goof up a few interviews, fall in love. We are people, not programmed devices.

I've told you three things - reasonable goals, balance and not taking it too seriously that will nurture the spark

. However, there are four storms in life that will threaten to completely put out the flame. These must be guarded against. These are disappointment, frustration, unfairness and loneliness of purpose.

Disappointment will come when your effort does not give you the expected return. If things don't go as planned or if you face failure.Failure is extremely difficult to handle, but those that do come out stronger.What did this failure teach me? is the question you will need to ask. You will feel miserable. You will want to quit, like I wanted to when nine publishers rejected my first

book. Some IITians kill themselves over low grades – how silly is that? But that is how much failure can hurt you.

But it's life.

If challenges could always be overcome, they would cease to be a challenge. And remember - if you are failing at something, that means you are at your limit or potential. And that's where you want to be.

Disappointment's cousin is frustration, the second storm. Have you ever been frustrated? It happens when things are stuck. This is especially relevant in India . From traffic jams to getting that job you deserve, sometimes things take so long that you don't know if you chose the right goal. After books, I set the goal of writing for Bollywood, as I thought they needed writers. I am called extremely lucky, but it took me five years to get close to a release.

Frustration saps excitement, and turns your initial energy into something negative, making you a bitter person. How did I deal with it? A realistic assessment of the time involved – movies take a long time to make even though they are watched quickly, seeking a certain enjoyment in the process rather than the end result – at least I was learning how to write scripts , having a side plan – I had my third book to write and even something as simple as pleasurable distractions in your life - friends, food, travel can help you overcome it. Remember, nothing is to be taken seriously. Frustration is a sign somewhere, you took it too seriously.

Unfairness - this is hardest to deal with, but unfortunately that is how our country works. People with connections, rich dads, beautiful faces, pedigree find it easier to make it – not just in Bollywood, but everywhere. And sometimes it is just plain luck. There are so few opportunities in India, so many stars need to be aligned for you to make it happen. Merit and hard work is not always linked to achievement in the short term, but the long term correlation is high, and ultimately things do work out. But realize, there will be some people luckier than you.

In fact, to have an opportunity to go to college and understand this speech in English means you are pretty darn lucky by Indian standards. Let's be grateful for what we have and get the strength to accept what we don't. I have so much love from my readers that other writers cannot even imagine it. However, I don't get literary praise. It's ok. I don't look like Aishwarya Rai, but I have two boys who I think are more beautiful than her. It's ok. Don't let unfairness kill your spark..

Finally, the last point that can kill your spark is isolation. As you grow older you will realize you are unique. When you are little, all kids want Ice cream and Spiderman. As you grow older to college, you still are a lot like your friends. But ten years later and you realize you are unique. What you want, what you believe in, what makes you feel, may be different from even the people closest to you. This can create conflict as your goals may not match with others. . And you may drop some of them. Basketball captains in college invariably stop playing basketball by the time they have their second child. They give up something that meant so much to them.

They do it for their family. But in doing that, the spark dies. Never, ever make that compromise. Love yourself first, and then others.

There you go. I've told you the four thunderstorms - disappointment, frustration, unfairness and isolation. You cannot avoid them, as like the monsoon they will come into your life at regular intervals. You just need to keep the raincoat handy to not let the spark die.

I welcome you again to the most wonderful years of your life. If someone gave me the choice to go back in time, I will surely choose college. But I also hope that ten years later as well, you eyes will shine the same way as they do today. That you will keep the Spark alive, not only through college, but through the next 2,500 weekends.

And I hope not just you, but my whole country will keep that spark alive, as we really need it now more than any moment in history. And there is something cool about saying - I come from the land of billion sparks.

I acknowledge

Here is my personal response, not book review, to 'the three mistakes of my life', a novel by Chetan Bhagat.

I am stunned.

I was in Ahmedabad during the riots, and I had cultivated some opinions, some fears, about the common man in the city.

I concluded that most of the non-minority group was against the minority. I believed that the businessmen were crude and selfish. And cricket, well, cricket was a game where one ball was tossed from one end of the TV screen to another. Whenever someone talked about the score, I'd ask without caring, does that mean we are winning or losing?

So when I started reading a novel about three hindu boys in Ahmedabad, who open a cricket shop next to a temple, well, I am simply being faithful to an earlier high of Chetan's first two books.

I think a writer bores you to establish your belief in the truth of the story. And then, when the ordinary bloke with whom you begin to identify becomes superhuman, the book has grabbed you. Your heart is stuck in the book, you and the book get into a bubble that is tighter than a spaceship hurtling in space. It is in the telling of the story lies the art. The telling of the story is the story.

Yes, I did ask myself, could this story really be true? I went back to Chetan's track record. God calling on the phone and all. But Five point someone was so so real. So Chetan gets fifty percent credibility. Thats no help.

The question still remains. Could this really be a true story?

Does it matter?

What is relevant is, the characters in the book have walked out of the book. I have met them. And they have changed my mind about certain stereotypes I carried in my baggage.

And for this, I can't thank him enough.

If you don't like browsing book shops, buy the book from here.

I confess

I confess that I have two reasons for the meanness in my last post.

First reason:
I usually don't do this. In fact, I once refused an offer to visit Amitabh Bachchan's house. I believe in letting the stars doze. More than an year ago, before I started blogging, I wrote an email to Chetan Bhagat. I poured out my struggle with publishing my manuscript, and also appreciated his first two novels. And then, I waited for a reply.

Second reason:
For the moment, this is unprintable. I do not yet have the courage to bite the hand that might feed me and make me famous. The courage will come after my novel is a bestseller!

And 'The Three mistakes of My Life' begins with Chetan Bhagat reading an email. A suicide note. And Chetan's response? He not only tracks down the emailer in a hospital, he takes the next flight to Ahmedabad from Singapore, meets the guy and gets his long story, his joys, his mistakes.

So you can imagine my jealous feelings.

Having said them, they are gone, and all there is left is love for this writer, and an urgent desire to get back into the book.

Book review, next post.

The three mistakes of my life

'Is there a bookshop near your house?' my mother asked on the phone.

'Nope.'

'Well, go to town, then. And buy this book, Chetan Bhagat's latest mistakes. I couldn't put it down. It's situated in Ahmedabad. You will love it.'

Sorry, mum, but this novel is such a drag that I have to make tremendous effort to remember to pick it up.

As of now, I am on page 50 something. Hopefully, it will pick up. If it does, I will complete this post. If not, I shall toss it in delete.