Two books that I quite wanted to read for some time, since, my friend told me these books existed. The fact that my friend is not an avid reader of books made me all the more curious. Anyway, the books I am talking about are Five Point Someone and One Night @ the Call Center, both by Chetan Bhagat, an IIT and IIM-A graduate, credentials that would make your parents proud and neighbours jealous. Five Point Someone was a general time pass read, as it would apply to any college, even though it is marketed as an IIT book. But ON@CC is definitely a book worth reading more than once, as it deals with a life that goes unnoticed by many people.
The story revolves around six call center employees and the night that transforms their life, when they receive a call from God. It does make one think about what we are doing with our lives and how often we fall victim to our circumstances. The call from the God is the high point and more interestingly the author presents God like a friendly authority, still not taking away the supernatural feeling. Chetan's English is very simple and is an easy read. You do not have to run to the dictionary every time you come across a 'big' word, unlike traditional novels. I finished both the books in one day. More over you come across words which we use in everyday conversation, but that does not make the novel dull, in fact, it connects you very well with the real world. I think it is a must read for everyone in India, at least people in the age group 20-30, because it deals with us. Vroom captured my attention from page 1, because you see a lot of people who claim to be anti-Americans, but in all reality they are craving for a luxurious life and are jealous. There is a lesson to be learnt from this and I feel it is up to us, the youth, who must stand up and fight for the cause of the nation, if we really want to India to become Incredible India.
The story revolves around six call center employees and the night that transforms their life, when they receive a call from God. It does make one think about what we are doing with our lives and how often we fall victim to our circumstances. The call from the God is the high point and more interestingly the author presents God like a friendly authority, still not taking away the supernatural feeling. Chetan's English is very simple and is an easy read. You do not have to run to the dictionary every time you come across a 'big' word, unlike traditional novels. I finished both the books in one day. More over you come across words which we use in everyday conversation, but that does not make the novel dull, in fact, it connects you very well with the real world. I think it is a must read for everyone in India, at least people in the age group 20-30, because it deals with us. Vroom captured my attention from page 1, because you see a lot of people who claim to be anti-Americans, but in all reality they are craving for a luxurious life and are jealous. There is a lesson to be learnt from this and I feel it is up to us, the youth, who must stand up and fight for the cause of the nation, if we really want to India to become Incredible India.
A word on the novels set in the backdrop of IIT's and IIM's. I read an article today in The Hindu, which clearly states that these institutes are used as a backdrop for marketing these books. I guess that helps the cause of these books, as I feel these books should reach maximum readers. In fact, when my friend suggested Chetan's books to me, little did I know that they were published in 2004 and 2005. I did think that they came out in 2006, because until I left India, I had not seen these books in bookstalls, or even for that matter in the road side shops. Now lot of these books are making a foray into the bookstalls, the latest being "Above Average" and one other book that am struggling to remember, but it is quite possible that is "Everything You Desire" as mentioned in the article. I remember seeing another book named "Games that Indians Play", though I am not sure if I can categorize that book along with these books! In any case I will definitely read all these books and waiting for more from Chetan and others.
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