Category Archives: chetan bhagat

Aug 2

Sometimes one plans something, but life has other plans in store for each person. I never would’ve have imagined 2 of my best friends would NOT be around despite making big plans & promising to be there for each other. Yes, old age plans of taking care of one another other…. god or nature or life had other plans for these two angels of mine -Kartik & Chetan. They left me & went off…

First Kartik passed away..one of Chetan’s best plays (i think it brought out all his energy, chutzpa & passion) Jungle mein mangal was staged…Then Chetan fell ill severely & we’d talk of a lot of things, as usual reg our life, plans, future…He told me not to pin my hopes on the Rotary intnl scholarship since it would be time consuming. He insisted i go back to television. He’d say, “I don’t know what u will do & where u will go, but go back on tv…u’re made for it…do some old people’s ads & he’d burst out laughing, But you shld go back to TV.” he left us all & this planet…in that one yr i got selected for the Intnl Rotary scholarship, they wanted me to go for the 2 yr stint, i opted for 4 months..returned to salary cut, pay loss of 4 months, but had managed to retain my job..wondered what I will do…

this Aug 2, was the 2nd anniversary for Chetan. It was my new job as i was to return to tv news! Yes i know chetan wld’ve been thrilled to bits…kartik wld’ve said here goes my mama again…no one will marry her…abso nutty…Chetan’s eldest bro’ Milind was over the top (He is on occassions…but listening to the joining date he was near to tears). He had insisted Aug 2 shld be my joining date & told him its the HR of NewsX that has to decide. I was all mixed in my stomach wt all sorts of emotions…

butterflies, wc i think is a v good indication for me. That means i’m not confident or over confident…little extra alert..weak coz i was getting fever…apprehensive because of the new place, abso new environment. After 5yrs i was being my old self wanting to take a risk despite a huge EMI…plus slightly emotional, though it can never be seen on my face….it was Chetan’s 2nd anniversary. There was some play planned by Avishkar for that day, but there was NO way i was going there. Guess nature had other plans for me.

I fell ill, got malaria & began shivering in the office itself. I was weak, got no time to think at all. I remembered the date…but I am a little finicky about these events…i believe life has to go on…there is not a single day of my life that goes when I don’t remember Kartik or Chetan. Their photographs are atop of my book shelf…i see their faces before i shut my eyes at night..i strongly they are seeing from top…my angels that they are..but last few weeks i have been feeling little lost..i miss them, i miss talking to them..most of all Chetan..

i also feel scared off late..i’ve been around..there for family whether parents, siblings or Chetan/Kartik (they were my family). But i hope i will have someone to be there for me…hope i am not left alone..it gets lonely sometimes.

2010, the New Yr

I don’t know about everyone but my new yr’s eve was interesting, quiet & was at home by 11.00pm. I clicked pictures of the once in a blue moon. It was surrounded by clouds first, then an aura of red rim…then after few hours i saw a blue light near it. I really enjoyed gallavanting around south Bombay to take pics of the moon.

The moon looked fiery. I remember reading in the newspapers that once ina blue it was…rare…glad to have captured it. Then went for a quiet dinner wt friends & was home in time to get some more good pics. Then was busy on the cellphone.

Next morning began the runs. My stomach hurts even today. I really fail to understand what i have eaten. The only problem i can remember is having fenugreek or methi as we call it. ALl these leafy veggies if i eat outside can hit my stomach, i’ve inherited an abso sensitive stomach fm my baba (father). But i saw a fab movie ‘raat gayi baat gayi.’ sooo much that we see around with married couples…how men r busy hitting upon every girl that walks around…saurabh shukla’s directed it..kallu mama. Brilliant job i must say..

however amidst all this one major controversy erupted. the makers of 3idiots film are caught in a fight with Chetan Bhagat who wrote a book part of wc the makers have adapted. it’s called five point something..

Now legally speaking they seem complacent. Who? The filmmakers -aamir (super actor..inspiration..adaptor etc), director – Raju Hirani & Vidhu Vinod Chopra Producer. But truly legally speaking they are NOT on a firm footing. Because even if they adapted they should have written so just below the credit lines of screen play, dialogue, writer…our friends did NOT think it wise, or rather they must’ve short changed Bhagat.

Bhagat for all his writing (wc i’m sorry i ain’t a fan, more so NOT motivated to read) wc has made him a bestseller in India, i’m sure he is well travelled & i presume with education, well read. Well i wish he had read more & consulted some lawyers, other writers when he may have been approached, informed by aamir, chopra or Hirani abt the film being made on his book. Unless ofcourse he was taken by their stardom -its’ ok, most are usually taken. Those who are NOT like me are considered pompous but who cares what others think.

I don’t know what went wrong with Bhagat’s thinking. But he wrote on his blog things that actually gave aamir a clean chit initially…then readers, fans wrote to bhagat & told him he was made an arse…so tehn in his blog he wrote…”I, frankly, was shocked to see this. This is because I was also fed ‘this is an original movie’ line a lot. I wanted to see the final script – it was never shown to me. I wanted to see the film before release – it was not shown to me (even though trials had been done for people). What’s more, the makers had called me to their office and pressured me several times to withdraw my ‘Based on a novel by’ credit, which was by contract. They told me they’d replace it with something like ‘initiated by’ – a credit that doesn’t exist anywhere in the world. I still told them that if the film is indeed original, I’ll happily withdraw the credit, but somehow the promos don’t tell me so. I asked them to show me the film and they fell silent.”

Bhagat wrote on his blog & slowly by 31st dec this was a huge controversy. Bhagat is an example for falling for in to the trap of these are nice guys they won’t let him down. But these are all business people. They realised here is a sucker. Someone gullible & quietly squeezed in one fine line, like caution smoking is injurious to health…like that bhagat’s name appears…he obviously must’ve NOT been paid a handsome amount. I also wonder whether Bhagat himself smelt that this film will be a big hit (he shld’ve considering aamir sells his films hard). He shld never have allowed the trio to cut him short.

Now the trio’s called Bhagat all names..then they try & out him down publicly. Such rascals, muscle men do this, these are creative people. What if someone were to steal aamir’s credits? In fact after amol guptey’s example, bhagat shld’ve been hard on aamir & gang…now the drama unfolds like Ektaa kapoor’s soaps…let’s see what more happens
Now the trio