I generally read Chetan Bhagat(C.B) when I have nothing to do and just to keep pace with what most of the youths love doing: reading romance filled yet dramatic story.
Released late this year, Half Girlfriend is a love story about couples who come from different part of the India, and more specifically a tribute to a guy from rural India who is haunted by his inability to speak english fluently.
Plot of the Story:
Madhav Jha comes in contact with Chetan Bhagat in Patna and leaves his some notes of his girlfriend, who, he assumes to have passed away. Inspite of Chetan unwillingness to read the notes of a poor bihari guy's deceased girlfriend, he can't get past the feeling and finally reads the whole diary overnight. The real story line in the novel starts when the author calls the boy in the early morning to talk about the details of the love relationship of the boy.
Madhav Jha, a boy from rural part of Bihar in India, comes from a former Royal family which garners him the respect from his villagers as a Prince (though he never enjoys being called so). Having played basketball as a state-level player, he applies to one of the premier educational institution of the country- St. Stephan College, via the sports quota. During the trail match for examination, Madhav comes across Riya Somani, a beautiful girl with pretty good english and from an elite delhi family. Just like how most of the love story starts, here Madhav easily falls in love with Riya. He befriends Riya by giving some tips on how to score. Later on both of them get selected in St. Stephen and their friendship blossoms based on common interest of basketball.
Time and often Madhav expresses his desire to make Riya his girlfriend which, most of the time is rejected. Finally they strike upon a deal when Riya proposes Madhav to become his Half Girlfriend (friends with benefits?? ;). In between the plot, the story also portrays the lifestyle that elites share: lavish parties, show-off's, stressed relationship, obsession to wealth, etc. Being obsessed to make Riya his own, Madhav demands that Riya have sex with him, which puts the relationship in stake and they finally part away.
The story gets a twist when after a year Riya marries her childhood friend Rohan who has a good business in London. Riya settles in London with her husband. Here Madhav Jha, not being able to overcome the guilt of inferior behavior with Riya leaves Delhi and relocates himself in the service of his village in Bihar, with his mother. He comes in contact with local MLA and requests him to help the school, but in vain. Later he confronts with an opportunity to approach to The Bill & Melinda Gates foundation for donation to his school via local MLA. As things roll on, Madhav becomes successful for being selected for Bill Gates visit to his school. Madhav now is supposed to make a impressive speech in a good english, so as to impress on Mr. Gates.
The story presents another twist when Madhav comes across Riya Somani (a divorcee now) while taking english classes in Patna. Riya who has moved to Patna as part of her job, helps Madhav to make an appealing speech. The couple become successful in getting a humongous grant from the foundation. Though the couple become close to each-other in this period, Riya leaves Madhav surprisingly after the function of Gates foundation. Madhav gets a letter of Riya that she had lung cancer and is left with three months to live. Madhav tries to find the whereabouts of Riya but fails. It is only after 3 complete years that Riya journal reveal of her being alive.
Just remembering the eternal wish of Riya to sing in bar of New York and live a peaceful life, Madhav speculates that she might be in New York and thus prepares to travel to New York. He manages to visit New York in an internship arrangement with the Gates Foundation and stays there with his college friend of Stephen. Finally, desperately searching for Riya for about 3 months, he finds her in a bar, just two days prior of him returning to India. They get married and justify their relationship and love. The story ends when the author visits Madhav and his family(with a son), 3 and half years later in their successfully running school of Bihar.
Review:
It took me 3 complete hours to read the book in which I felt like a movie play running in a single plot. More than a literature type, the book resembles to a script of a bollywood movies. You can see parts of life of Bihar, Delhi and New York. Special appearance of Bill Gates, and dramatic plots of union and separation of the couple, etc.
Similarly,the story moves along the line of negative stereotyping of Bihar as a backward and most reviled state in India and of Biharis as bumpkin, not so good with English, obsessed with sex,etc., while of Delhiites girls as fair, beautiful, and intelligent.
Earlier book of Bhagat sounded more realistic and read-worthy basically because that he had personal experience with the storyline of previous novel and he could relate himself with them. This recent one is more dramatic. He also fails to explain why a girl from Delhi elite falls for a pathetically portrayed rural guy from Bihar who had no talents beside basketball.
However just like Bhagat's previous novel, Half Girlfriend is less boring to read. Though the novel is devoid of any moral lessons, it goes in line to the objective of Chetan Bhagat "to make India read like never before". This novel is going to be another success as it contains dramatic love-life of stereotyped Delhi girl and Bihari boy and on top of that it contains all species that Bollywood movie has: dramatic, romance and sex. Thus the book is suggested only for hard-core fan of Chetan Bhagat and the people who are new to english novel reading.
Released late this year, Half Girlfriend is a love story about couples who come from different part of the India, and more specifically a tribute to a guy from rural India who is haunted by his inability to speak english fluently.
Madhav Jha comes in contact with Chetan Bhagat in Patna and leaves his some notes of his girlfriend, who, he assumes to have passed away. Inspite of Chetan unwillingness to read the notes of a poor bihari guy's deceased girlfriend, he can't get past the feeling and finally reads the whole diary overnight. The real story line in the novel starts when the author calls the boy in the early morning to talk about the details of the love relationship of the boy.
Madhav Jha, a boy from rural part of Bihar in India, comes from a former Royal family which garners him the respect from his villagers as a Prince (though he never enjoys being called so). Having played basketball as a state-level player, he applies to one of the premier educational institution of the country- St. Stephan College, via the sports quota. During the trail match for examination, Madhav comes across Riya Somani, a beautiful girl with pretty good english and from an elite delhi family. Just like how most of the love story starts, here Madhav easily falls in love with Riya. He befriends Riya by giving some tips on how to score. Later on both of them get selected in St. Stephen and their friendship blossoms based on common interest of basketball.
Time and often Madhav expresses his desire to make Riya his girlfriend which, most of the time is rejected. Finally they strike upon a deal when Riya proposes Madhav to become his Half Girlfriend (friends with benefits?? ;). In between the plot, the story also portrays the lifestyle that elites share: lavish parties, show-off's, stressed relationship, obsession to wealth, etc. Being obsessed to make Riya his own, Madhav demands that Riya have sex with him, which puts the relationship in stake and they finally part away.
The story gets a twist when after a year Riya marries her childhood friend Rohan who has a good business in London. Riya settles in London with her husband. Here Madhav Jha, not being able to overcome the guilt of inferior behavior with Riya leaves Delhi and relocates himself in the service of his village in Bihar, with his mother. He comes in contact with local MLA and requests him to help the school, but in vain. Later he confronts with an opportunity to approach to The Bill & Melinda Gates foundation for donation to his school via local MLA. As things roll on, Madhav becomes successful for being selected for Bill Gates visit to his school. Madhav now is supposed to make a impressive speech in a good english, so as to impress on Mr. Gates.
The story presents another twist when Madhav comes across Riya Somani (a divorcee now) while taking english classes in Patna. Riya who has moved to Patna as part of her job, helps Madhav to make an appealing speech. The couple become successful in getting a humongous grant from the foundation. Though the couple become close to each-other in this period, Riya leaves Madhav surprisingly after the function of Gates foundation. Madhav gets a letter of Riya that she had lung cancer and is left with three months to live. Madhav tries to find the whereabouts of Riya but fails. It is only after 3 complete years that Riya journal reveal of her being alive.
Just remembering the eternal wish of Riya to sing in bar of New York and live a peaceful life, Madhav speculates that she might be in New York and thus prepares to travel to New York. He manages to visit New York in an internship arrangement with the Gates Foundation and stays there with his college friend of Stephen. Finally, desperately searching for Riya for about 3 months, he finds her in a bar, just two days prior of him returning to India. They get married and justify their relationship and love. The story ends when the author visits Madhav and his family(with a son), 3 and half years later in their successfully running school of Bihar.
Review:
It took me 3 complete hours to read the book in which I felt like a movie play running in a single plot. More than a literature type, the book resembles to a script of a bollywood movies. You can see parts of life of Bihar, Delhi and New York. Special appearance of Bill Gates, and dramatic plots of union and separation of the couple, etc.
Similarly,the story moves along the line of negative stereotyping of Bihar as a backward and most reviled state in India and of Biharis as bumpkin, not so good with English, obsessed with sex,etc., while of Delhiites girls as fair, beautiful, and intelligent.
Earlier book of Bhagat sounded more realistic and read-worthy basically because that he had personal experience with the storyline of previous novel and he could relate himself with them. This recent one is more dramatic. He also fails to explain why a girl from Delhi elite falls for a pathetically portrayed rural guy from Bihar who had no talents beside basketball.
However just like Bhagat's previous novel, Half Girlfriend is less boring to read. Though the novel is devoid of any moral lessons, it goes in line to the objective of Chetan Bhagat "to make India read like never before". This novel is going to be another success as it contains dramatic love-life of stereotyped Delhi girl and Bihari boy and on top of that it contains all species that Bollywood movie has: dramatic, romance and sex. Thus the book is suggested only for hard-core fan of Chetan Bhagat and the people who are new to english novel reading.
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