The Three Mistakes Of My Life

Chetan Bhagat. I really like the way he writes. It’s so identifiable; it’s really lucid, simple and entertaining. I have high regards for Chetan Bhagat. Not because he writes great stuff, but because he writes for the masses. ”The biggest selling Indian writer in english”- proclaims the cover of his newest book. If Salman Rushdie can be attributed with taking Indian English writing to the world then Chetan Bhagat is responsible for making Indian writing accessible to Indians. He is the reason why I believe “Five point someone” should be included in BTech curriculums across the country, because students read it anyway. And you don’t need a dictionary assistance for his books.:)  The guy deserves some praise for that. Although its true that his writing not very high profile, but it has impact. Its for our generation,  who want their books to be in their language, their lingo, the one they speak. It’s about their emotions. That’s the reason why the story of an IITian is identifiable to all the college goers in the country and why people working in IT sector can empathize with the protagonists of One nite @ call centre.

His new novel- “The three mistakes of my life” is definitely not a trash as many reviewers might have pointed out.

“The three mistakes of my life” is no mistake by any chance. First things first. It’s not a great book. Forget it, it’s not close to five point someone. But its still a nice time pass read. The kind of books that you like to finish in one go. Just like bollywood movies.(His stories have a typical bollywoodish feel to them, maybe that’s why filmmakers are adapting his novels into movies). His third novel has clear glimpses of a bollywood drama. It has all the emotions, twists and turns. It’s about a businessman and his friends, set in the backdrop of Gujrat during the times of earthquake and Godhra. The elements of Cricket, religion and business provide all the necessary drama. The plot and story are just about okay. But at the end of it, you expect a little more. And I felt the title was not apt. Because the ‘mistakes’ that Gopal commits, are not really ‘mistakes’. It can happen to anyone. Perhaps, as  the tone of novel is in retrospect, it looks okay.

Make no mistake, it’s a one time read, okay shokay, definitely not as bad as many reviewers have rated it, but definitely not as good as his earlier novels!!