My story begins where Chetan's end- Ketan Bhagat!!!

This interview of Ketan Bhagat was published in DNA newspaper on 18th April, 2013. Do read it HERE.

How different is your style of writing from that of your brother? 

Our styles are very different, while Chetan writes in the first person I write in the third. My stories begin where Chetan’s end. He has a knack of connecting with the youth with his books and writes about the struggles that the youth are facing, career choices they have to make and relationship issues that they have to deal with — things that shape your destiny. So, it’s not just the style but the topics that we write about too. I am not as talented as Chetan so I can’t write from a youth’s perspective. I have focused on different phases in my life, something every reader will identify with. 

Is it an asset or a liability to have him as a brother?

Both I guess. The reason you are speaking to me or are curious about me is because Chetan is a brand who has a huge following. So, my connection with him in that sense is an asset. However, it is also a liability because he is very successful and comparisons will be made — a debutante will be compared to one of the most popular authors in the country.

You know he gets ridiculed a lot on social networking sites... Does it happen to you? 

Yes, it happens all the time and instead of taking offence I enjoy the creative ways in which people criticise me. I remember someone criticising Chetan’s novels and then commenting about how horrible my work would be as I have admitted that I am not as talented as my brother. However, I do have a sense of humour that helps me sail through the barbs and take criticism with a pinch of salt.

Would you ever write a film script?

I became an author by accident. A story kept haunting me and I decided to write about it with my first novel. While I have wrapped this one up I have already started jotting down points for my second novel and I will be busy with that. Having said that I believe you should never say never as you can never predict how things will unfold.

Which Indian authors do you admire?

I enjoy reading books by Salman Rushdie. In fact, Midnight’s Children is one of my favourites because of Rushdie’s command over the language and the ways in which he presents stories and builds a narrative. 

Name three books that every guy should read.

That’s a hard one. The reason I wrote this book was I could not find any novel out there that truly captures what a man goes through in his relationships. Whether it’s what happens after marriage, seeing your wife and mother fight at times, being a victim of office politics, or deciding between a comfortable life or a convenient one — all of this is generally told from a woman’s perspective never a man’s. I wanted to present that untold story through my work.

You have earlier spoken about the title of your book 

Complete/Convenient. Has moving to India helped you feel complete and what is it about this country that 

completes you? 

Yes, it has. I am very happy and content with my decision to come back. I think when you step out of India, you see things from a different point of view. You begin to miss things that you have taken for granted all your life. Whether it’s your family, circle of friends, social network or your maid or the labourer who comes to your door to help in your chores, you realise how they add to your life. I am not saying that India is perfect. It has it flaws – widespread corruption, bureaucracy and overflowing problems – but feeling complete does not mean perfection. I think it’s the process of knowing who you are, what you want and finding your place that completes you.

You have dabbled in a lot of things from being an anchor with Doordarshan, a scriptwriter, software developer at the same time helping your wife run her yoga classes and sales. Now you have decided to pen your experiences and have written a book. When you look back how do you think working in such varied fields has helped you? 

I can best describe my life’s journey as a spicy mixed vegetable. I started off as a waiter. I cleaned toilets in a five star hotel, and then moved on to become an anchor and finally a writer. All my jobs helped shape my personality. Because of my varied experiences I can empathise with people and step into their shoes and see life the way they see it. I think, that has helped me as a writer.

Tell me a bit about your book 

The story of my book 

Complete/Convenient is about a young couple who migrate to Australia for a better life. The novel neither glamourises NRIs nor shows them as victims. It just presents different situations that most NRIs go through. While it’s fiction, it is based on real life characters and incidents. It looks at an existential dilemma that NRIs sometimes face when they have to choose between a convenient life abroad or a complete one back home.

In an earlier interview, you spoke about Chetan being a prankster as a kid. Could you share an incident that you 

remember...

My mother had this red sari and we had a phantom mask. When worn together it looked quite scary. Chetan would go around wearing that and would hide behind trees and scare kids. He also convinced me that I was picked up from a dustbin.

Finally, how would you rate yourself as a writer? 

I think, instead of me rating myself I would want my readers to decide. I think I am an average writer. There is nothing exceptional or extraordinary about me or the way I write. I am here to tell a story, the way I see it, drawing from real-life experiences, hoping to touch a chord with people.

Melissa D’Costa

Published Date:  Apr 18, 2013

First Read: “Complete/Convenient” Ketan Bhagat’s Debut by Udaipurtimes.com!!!

This is the first review of Ketan Bhagat's debut novel- Complete/Convenient!!!

If we talk about the newest generation of our country, we’d find that a majority of enthusiastic youth dream to settle down somewhere in abroad, even if for pursuing higher studies. Something about this idea never fails to excite the ambitious. But is this opinion well founded? Is it really a dream life out there? This is the idea that Ketan Bhagat’s novel Complete/Convenient deals with and takes you through the interesting journey of Kabir, the protagonist in the story.

By the way, for those wondering who is Ketan Bhagat? Let me introduce him. Ketan Bhagat is a typical 35 year old middle class common man living in Mumbai. And, he also happens to be the younger sibling of India’s one of the most successful writers, Chetan Bhagat.

About his book, Ketan has opined on the lines that he has been inspired by the real life incidents. The story is about a working chap turning his life to face an entirely new set of challenges when he gets transferred to Australia.

After a helter-skelter wedding, he happily leaves his past behind to make a leap into the direct future to enjoy the fruits of his assiduously earned promotion. It is realized in the following pages that the guy, who works in Satyamev at a salary of 10 lacs and scored 96% in Maths in tenth class, has achieved his dream. But the story is deeper than that.

All Kabir, the lead character of the story, could imagine was a kingly life with crazy new adventures and an awesome amount of time on beaches. He never foresaw that soon he would start missing his homeland. That soon he would find solace in the colonies of Indian culture and talk about the people back home with the people he’s surrounded by now.

Ketan has marvelously attempted to paint the reader’s imagination with the kind of endurance Kabir struggles to find in himself. The quick flash-forward in the opening chapters of the book gives a fair and prospective idea about how the story is going to turn, and that is exactly what the reader finds.

The book never swerves off the path to its main plot and quickly passes by all the pertinent story-building experiences Kabir has to go through. Ketan deftly avoids over description where unnecessary and lands on to bigger things in almost no time. The romance is sweet and the office war is bitter, kind of like how it always is!

One thing to notice is the enticing description of the city- Sydney. After reading the extracts I referred to Ketan’s profile again to learn that he has lived in Australia for four years himself, which is a fun fact I think should be widely known. The book is written in a sometimes serious but largely entertaining tone. The character sketches are almost all lively and easily relatable and the way they act hits home.

I think the book can be expected to steer clear above the doubtful interpretations of the various generations of reader and make Ketan an instant hit writer, but as it goes without saying, the public reaction is always difficult to predict. The book focuses a particular portion of the large audience but it might connect with all types of readers.

I’d been provided a review copy for pre-launch review of the book, but the release date is expected to be in May this year.

I recommend this as a must read for all those who think they can get away dreaming to get out of our fertile country without pausing to think, and good read for all those who think they can’t get away at all. In fact, go ahead and check this thing out, because it will teach you things you had never considered before. And also because it has the potential to be the next thing everyone is talking about!

Dollar dreams of an NRI!!! Ketan Bhagat!!!

This is an Interview of Chetan Bhagat published at postnoon.com. Refer this link.

A sensitive guy with a great sense of humour, Ketan Bhagat is almost ready to launch his first novel — Complete/Convenient. Postnoon chats with the nervous wreck to find out more.

Competition among siblings is quite the norm—we practically grow up competing with our elder and, in-their-imagination, wiser brothers and sisters. However, competition at school level or even college might not be as tricky as one on a professional level.

Ketan Bhagat, who’s the younger brother of celebrated author Chetan Bhagat, is all set to launch his first novel next month. Titled Complete/ Convenient, the book focuses on the life of an NRI. Whether the book will change the relationship the two brothers currently share, only time can tell. For now, we give you the excerpts from a tete-a-tete with Chhota Ketan, who has his fingers tightly crossed.

Q. What compelled you to write the book? Was the success that your brother enjoys a factor?

Ans: I started writing the book in 2010, a little before I decided to move back to India, giving up my almost perfect life in Sydney. What an NRI goes through once he gets to live the dream he’s been dreaming is a topic that is very close to my heart. It was what I was going through personally that provoked me to write the book. Like the lead character Kabir, I too, was a typical Indian boy who always dreamed of going abroad and earning in dollars. However, there is a cost and sacrifice all NRIs have to make to leave their home country. My book is about that. It is a representation of what life abroad is like, it does not say if that is bad or living in India is good. It’s just a story of an NRI’s life through Kabir.

It took me about two years to finish writing. While I hadn’t started writing with the purpose of making a profit out of it, now that its release is barely a month away, I want people to pick it up. Chetan being what he is was a major factor, yes. But not because I wanted a piece of his success or anything, it was a factor only because he knew much more than me about the market. And, about writing in general.

Q. Did you consult your brother about the book? Has he read it? Do you think your book can cause a serious sibling rivalry?

Ans: Initially, he did say that I’d be ripped apart by the people and I needn’t get into anything in such a rush. However, after reading the book, he did say it was a good read and is very readable. Plus, both of us somehow can’t agree with each on creative subjects. We never have.

My intention is not to compete with my brother — I can’t. The way a newbie who wants to set up an IT Company can’t compete with Narayan Murthy, I can’t compete with my brother. He’s huge in India and I’m very happy about that. I just needed to pen down what I felt, and things just led to a book. Plus, a living successful example within the family was only reassuring.

Q. How would you describe a typical NRI life?

Ans: The book will answer that question. Anyway, everything in the book is based on real characters. It will give the reader a significant insight into the life of an NRI. It talks about how one is surprised by other countries that are so beautifully run, where one doesn’t need to fear cops, etc. But then, there’s that longing to return home. For instance, there is a chapter on what an NRI couple goes through during Diwali out of India.

Q. When is Complete/ Convenient releasing? Do have any ideas for a second book?

Ans: The book will release on May 15. However, the publishers—Shrishti — suggested that we release it online before that. I have a topic for another book though I had vouched not to write again, but it is too addictive. The next one might be about the relationship between a father and his child. Again, the topic is very close to me. I’m a very sensitive person and can only write about things that matter to me personally.

Q.Other than a passion for writing, what other similarities do the Bhagat brothers have?

Ans: We have very similar names, thanks to our non-creative parents. But, the similarity ends there. While he’s always been the topper in the family, I’ve been the one barely going through. Even when our parents were called to school, the reasons varied in my case and in his. For me, the teachers only had complaints and for him, it was always praise.

To know more about the author, you can log on: www.ketanbhagat.com