“The Girl In Room 105” is not the kind of title that we associate with Chetan Bhagat. “I have overdone romance,” admits the best-selling author as we settle for a conversation at his usual abode in Delhi – Room 45 in India International Centre. After a long inning with Rupa, this is the first of his six-book deal with Westland.
“I am known for love stories and relationship tales. I haven’t dabbled in crime fiction but thrillers are a big part of the best selling authors’ arsenal. So I wanted to give it a try.” It seems unalloyed love is diminishing in society as well. “Well, we are not living in an era of romance anymore. People are coming in and out of relationships rather quickly. Like follow and unfollow, it has become love and un-love,” he chuckles.
Like his romance, Chetan says his thriller also has a dash of humour. “There has always been an element of suspense in my stories but this one is a proper thriller with clues and red herrings. It is a traditional mystery plot. I revisited a number of Agatha Christie’s works but made sure that it remains relevant to India. As always, the social backdrop of India enriches the novel.”
Not a propaganda book
And if you go by trailer, which was released on his YouTube channel early this week, the thriller emanates from the romance between the son of a Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh worker and a Kashmiri girl. Finally, RSS is getting space in English popular fiction. “In a cool way,” interrupts Chetan. “It is not an RSS book but it definitely finds mention. Whatever is your take on it, RSS is one of the biggest organisations in the country. The statement that ‘my father is a member of RSS’ applies to millions of people in this country.” In recent years, we have seen its reference in films such as Bajrangi Bhaijan and Dum Laga Ke Haisha but we don’t get its reflection in popular fiction. “Because culture is controlled by the elite Lutyens Delhi media,” argues Chetan.
He denies that he is getting into propaganda mode. “It is not about pushing the RSS ideology. It is just that if you are a member of RSS and your son is dating a Kashmiri Muslim girl, there is bound to be some interesting conversations. It has been dealt with a light touch.”
Describing his protagonist Keshav as a bumbling detective, Chetan says he is a true liberal, somebody who is not even aware that he is a liberal. “Unlike many of us who go about hammering their liberal values, he just goes about solving the case, countering the prejudices that come his way. It is my take on what a true liberal character can do.”
Keshav is an average IIT product who teaches in a coaching class. He has emerged out of Chetan’s journeys to different cities in the country.
“I have found that there is a lot of underemployment among youth. Keshav is one of those who doesn’t have a goal until circumstances find him one.” In contrast, Zara is a bright IITian from Kashmir who is doing her Ph.D. “She is for a peaceful Kashmir and her politics is very liberal. Something happens to Zara and while solving the mystery, Keshav gets to know the prejudices that exist about Muslims. The reader will get to know Kashmir better through the eyes of Keshav.”
Chetan says the idea is to tell his average reader what’s happening in Kashmir. One reminds him that he was trolled sometime back when he wrote an open letter to the Kashmiri youth. “Some people try to appropriate the issue. I am no Kashmir expert and I am not offering a solution to the political problem but I know enough to write a book around it. Unless the rest of India understands what is happening in Kashmir, the issue will be reduced to a statistic or a topic of panel discussions.”
Chetan, who has spent some of his childhood days in Kashmir as his father was in the Army, says his understanding is that not everybody in Kashmir has strong political views. “A lot of Kashmiri people are interested in getting jobs. They miss internet and movie theatres. They want companies to go there to offer jobs. They are not prepared to sacrifice their entire life for an ideology. The problem is that only extreme voices on either side are taking centre stage.”
A popular columnist, Chetan is worried that we are living in polarised times. “Everything is being questioned on social media. People don’t seem to understand ideas like equality and fairness and justice are not left or right wing concepts. They are good for everybody. I fear things will get worse before they get better.”
But when the BJP government came to power, he emerged as one of its supporters. “We needed a change, and this was the only change available. You have to see things in context. The feeling is of despair, not regret. It was not that the other guys were better. One of the problems is that the media is losing its power to keep the government in check. But I believe in the wisdom of Indian voter.”
Marketing tool
On introducing the book through a theatrical trailer directed by Mohit Suri, Chetan says he has to find new ways to market his books. “Youngsters have become addicted to phones where they watch videos. I need a two-minute video to pull them to the book. Yes, it does create an image of characters before people reading the book but I don’t see it as some sort of dilution. Charles Dickens used to narrate stories in the street to sell his books. We have to keep up with times.”
(Also read: The art of selling words on page 6)
