This is the first book I’ve read by an Indian author. I wanted one which was set in India, but didn’t have India or “Indianness” as the theme of the book as such. I tried reading Midnight Chidren by Salman Rushdie and abandoned it because I found it too boring. Everyone assured me that “2 States” wasn’t about India as such, but about two people. They were right…and a bit wrong as well. The story is about how two people from different states fall in love and can’t get married because the parents will object to it.
I was shocked by how big a jerk the main protagonist was. It’s written in the first person, but I can’t feel any sympathy whatsoever for the lead character. He’s thoughtless, puts up with all kinds of rudeness from his overbearing and nauseatingly bigoted mother and doesn’t utter a peep when she openly insults the girl he loves. In one situation his mother complains about how she’s too independent, and thinking themselves alone he assures her that she’ll be brought under control once married. The girl overhears this and predictably leaves him in a fit of rage. He goes to pieces and we’re supposed to feel sorry for him.
Sorry dude, but if you act like an asshole you deserve to be treated like one.
After they both have sex for the first time, the girl begins to ask him about their future. Granted it’s a bit naive for her to simply assume that there’s going to be a future and I can’t blame the guy for not really thinking about it. But even after he becomes aware of how important the question is for her, he pretends not to understand what she’s talking about and keeps putting her off. Total jerk material.
Usually in books written in the first person, the author makes the reader sympathetic to his cause. Reasons are given for even shameful conduct and while the reader may not approve of his or her actions, they can at least understand the motivations. But Chetan Bhagat gives nothing – no explanations for why he acts like a prick. He completely alienated me and made me feel he deserved his misfortune.
His final plot resolution came out of nowhere. A complete deus ex machina. In real life he would be reaping the consequences of his actions to this date. Only in the middle of the book do I begin to like him when he’s trying to win over the girl’s parents. But then he falls back into prickiness again.
The girl is only slightly better. She’s unable to see how insulting her own parents are and refuses to say a word against them. She doesn’t want to marry anyone else, but still allows her parents to fix up meetings with other men. It’s not only unjust to the guy she’s in love with, it’s also unfair to the men who come to see her.
The book is full of stereotypes. No attempt is made at character development and our author happily judges people based on their hair do, their accent and the food they eat. Granted lots of people judge in this way, but I read an author for his superior insight into the world not for his superficial judgement of appearances.
My wife tells me that all people are like this. That almost everyone in India is entirely beholden to their parents. I can’t and won’t believe this. It’s not possible for everyone to be such a big asshole as the main protagonist. Perhaps he exaggerated and actually did try and restrain his mother when she behaved in such a shocking manner towards the girl and his parents. I certainly hope so. If my wife is right and most people in India are like this I’m gonna get real depressed.
Oh, no! Your first book by an Indian author and it was one of Chetan Bhagat’s? My condolences. The IIT/IIM connection has been nicely monetized, he does market surveys on what people want to read about and then writes what they want to hear – the lowest common denominator. And then prices the books for maximum volume. Good for him, he knows to make money..except I can’t call him an author. Marketer, good one for sure. This one’s monetized factors were romance, north versus south, sunken marriage humour.
The call center book had God as a character. With dialogues! Enough said!
In reply to Sangitha
Nice to know he may not be as bad as portrayed in the book!
I read maybe 3-4 chapters of this but couldnt find anything “hook” ing me to keep going. It was a light read and intended that way. I found it rather filmi/ unreal in most places but many of the North vs South characterizations were okay with some deliberate exaggerations. I’ve been thinking that’s fair game in comedy. The laughter challenge type humor guys on TV go to much greater lengths.
Since somebody on this thread said FPS is a much better book I tried it over the weekend but found it even worse. I gave up at abt 40 pages. Maybe because I had already gotten used to the CB brand of humor I didnt get even the initial ‘kick’. This may not have been fair to the book but I kept comparing it to “3 Idiots”.
The only part of FPS I liked was that the Aamir character wasnt there in all his superheroic glory, taking top ranks while seemingly never studying, getting the girl, doing the parties, hundreds of patents, turning down the Nobel prize (okay maybe not that last one). Ryan was much more realistic… of the 3 he had the worst GPAs. The narrator, not Ryan, seemed to be on track to winning the girl’s affections.
thx,
Jai
“…The book is full of stereotypes. No attempt is made at character development and our author happily judges people based on their hair do, their accent and the food they eat….”
I didnt get too far into the book to judge but I hope the attempts at humor are not much of a problem and you are more concerned with the jerk factor.
For contrast, I just found out that the Darwin awards are given to real life people who actually died doing something stupid. If anybody can find that funny and award-worthy they are capable of taking stilted characterizations of fictional people and not being too injured in the process- IMO.
thanks,
Jai
In reply to Jai_C
Well, I never really looked at the book as a comedy. I didn’t know it was supposed to be one and I approached it with full seriousness since this was to be my first Indian author. So that might have contributed to my issues with it.
Chetan Bhagat is a good blogger not an author. First his college life, then his love life, I mean come on… authoring a book is much more than forcefitting people we come across in our lives into gross stereotypes. He could as well be writing his own diary in the name of a book. Even your approach had been that of a humorous read, you wouldn’t have found much Bhagwad. Believe me.
In reply to Deepthi
Thanks for that Deepthi…you do have a point. Even while talking about oneself, when writing a book I expect much more insight from an author. Like in “Of Human Bondage” for example….
In reply to bhagwad
Bhagwad,
May I suggest you to read Sidin Vadukut if you haven’t read him already. He’s better at bringing out humour in the same genre of writing as Chetan Bhagat if only with better grace and ease.
this is a book to be read in bathroom…:)…cool review
Hi, thanks for this book review.
I also read about this book on BookChums and find the book reviews mentioned here original and not the paid once. I am going to read this book for sure. (yeah.. i know I am late)
LOL!!
I LOVED your review! I totally second every single word you have written!
I HATED the book, the characters, the story line (actually everything about the book!)
In reply to Pixie
Great minds…
dude…!! hw cn u say so abt him…olmost half of d india lovd his work..!! may be more dan dat….ur point of u of looking at something is so negative….i guess u hav never been in love…..
I hated the book too :). Actually threw it across the room in my own fit of rage BECAUSE of the protagonist’s character in the book. Call me weird, but I found it strange to learn that his wife actually has connection to Anusha and didn’t burn him alive for not writing this way. I could have punched him on her behalf.
I don’t care if all men in India are jerks. To proudly display it in literary form as if it’s something to show… ugh! makes me shudder! For god sakes at least realize how much of an ass you are.
I have just finished reading 2 States. Yes, as many of the reviews reflect that it is a novel totally focusing on the Indian Cultural context, I do agree with that. I think our parents have the right to smile when we get married. Behind our life they do have a great contribution. Now-a-days, it is very common and easy to elope with the one you love. You may be happy doing this, but the true happiness will be there if we, like Krish and Ananya, can win over our parents minds. Above all, the importance to be an Indian at heart first will be a great achievement for the nation. That is our true identity not Panjabi or Tamilian.
Thanks, Chatan Bhagat, for your invitation to us, the readers, to love our nation first.