Half Girlfriend

by Chetan Bhagat

Once upon a time, there was a Bihari boy called Madhav. He fell in love with girl called Riya.

Madhav didn’t speak English well. Riya did.

Madhav wanted a relationship. Riya didn’t.

Riya just wanted friendship. Madhav didn’t.

Riya suggested a compromise. She agreed to be his half girlfriend.

From the author of the blockbuster novels Five Point Someone, One Night @ the Call Center, The 3 Mistakes of My Life, 2 States and Revolution 2020 comes a simple and beautiful love story that will touch your heart and inspire you to chase your dreams.

Genres: Fiction, Romance, Indian Literature, India, Novels, Contemporary, Young Adult

269 pages, Kindle Edition

First published September 30, 2014

About the author

Chetan Bhagat writes op-ed columns for English and Hindi newspapers, including Times of India and Dainik Bhaskar, focusing on youth and issues based on national development. Bhagat is also a motivational speaker and has given talks in leading MNCs and other institutions. He quit his international investment banking career in 2009, to devote his entire time to writing. In 2008, The New York Times called Bhagat "the biggest selling English language novelist in India’s history". Bhagat, a graduate of Indian Institute of Technology (IIT) Delhi and IIM Ahmedabad, is seen more as a youth icon than as an author.

Reviews

[Archana Amaragandhi · Rating 1 out of 5]

Chetan! Chetan! Who are you?
Where are you headed, do you have a clue?
I bought your book and read it through,
Trust me dear, there is nothing new!

A horny hero and a pretty heroine,
A prestigious college, stereotypic routine!
The story line is an absolute miss,
Front page ad in TOI, for a book like this?

The back cover talks about Hindi and English,
All that is just plain marketing rubbish.
This book breaks no language differences,
Hasn’t even escaped Bhagat’s prejudiced preferences.

I loved you once when you wrote good fun.
Best of all, ‘Five Point Someone’.
Since then you are stooping to your lowest low,
Half Girlfriend, your final blow?

Same story twice, can be an honest mistake.
But three and four times? Give me a break!
Name your leads and share your location,
I can write your next story to Bhagat’s perfection.

“Simple English is my style”,
Says Chetan Bhagat all the time.
I am happy with that, totally fine.
But excuse me mister, where is the storyline?

Your sexist one-liners are witty no more,
Don’t you remember, you’ve told them before?
You claim that your writing is for the rich to the slums,
They have better IQs than that, don’t underestimate them.

You are an author who could have been!
You’ve let it go for the silver screen.
Are you trying to increase you reader hood?
Or simply selling out to Bollywood?

There have been authors just like you,
Who’ve written good books and screenplays too.
But you’ve got too carried away and lost the act,
And quoting your Alma matter to hide that fact.

Chetan O’ Chetan, Where are you?
I am not an elitist, I used to really like you.
Give us simple but also different and new.
Slow your star-chase and get real dude!

[Riku Sayuj · Rating 1 out of 5]

The Thought Process of a Genius

Once upon a time, there was a guy who wanted to be an author. He wrote a couple of decent works and then got caught in a loop. This reviewer is setting it down here, so that he can try breaking out of it and stop crowding out other better-written books.

The Conception:

1. He has convinced himself that he is supposed to be the common man's author
2. So has a responsibility to pick up mundane topics and themes
3. And they have to be cliched and not too intricate - because the common man's life is just not complicated enough for a Dostoevskian treatment (god forbid!), or for a "literary treatment"
4. So it has to be non-literary and cliched. Got it?
5. It also has to employ poor language because not only is he the common man's voice, but his readers are also the common men, who wants the processed goods, the easy stuff.
6. Conclusion: He has the recipe for an untapped new brand of literature - exploring the lives of the common men of India. Genius Idea. Surely.
7. Sounds quite grand, if you ask him!

The Execution:

1. Having worked out his grand role thus, this self-appointed common man's author sits down to write.
2. He doesn't realize this, but the role he has assigned makes it very easy for him to crank out book after book with almost minimal effort.
3. He might be able to finish an entire plot in one sitting. After all exposing cliches as reality (without getting into the complexities that make them a part of life) is his role.
4. He is surprised at the ease with which he is able to do this. His characters just seem to spring out of nowhere and fade into nothingness between the covers, doing exactly what he bids them in between. Complete mastery. Which author can boast of that?
5. Conclusion: Must be a genius.

( Bonus: He discovers that he is now also an expert in every national issue and can pontificate effortlessly. He does not realize that anyone can have an opinion, and by being allowed to mouth off on them, he is not being treated like an expert, but as a celebrity. Being a celebrity in this country is license to be an expert on anything, and he gets disproportionate voice in the media, though usually a shrill and mildly pompous one. He becomes hated by the intellectual community of the country for this. Geniuses are always hated, right? Hence conclusion is reinforced. )

[Ayesha]

[daph pink ♡ · Rating 1 out of 5]

I love this book so much...every time I think about it I wonder how could someone write just a piece of shit and still be called India's greatest author!

Yes we are talking about honey Singh of writers!.....CB(or vice versa is also true ,I NEEDN'T SAY ANYMORE)

Well one thing I wish is if only CB lived in Shakespearean era Juliet would have been Romeo half girlfriend and they both have lived!!

[Saiber · Rating 1 out of 5]

YES, I know it might have come across as a major surprise to all those who know me, I did infact read this book. I read it all. And I took some time out and did not post the review. But now it's here.

Major Spoilers ahead.
(As I have ranted the whole story basically. I NEEDED some kind of therapeutical venting after I lost so many of my brain cells reading this.)

I had absolutely no plans of reading another clichéd novel with bad writing and predictable plot and annoying characters. But one of my friends with a fairly good taste in books said "This book was great." Along with some pleasantries about how the protagonist was so romantic by what he did in the end.
Obviously I was flummoxed as to what came over her for to think that. And as a good friend I became obliged to tell her the same.
I still can't get over the fact that she said it was great. G-R-E-A-T.

The last Chetan Bhagat novel I read was 2 States- I think that one was OKAY compared to all the rest. AS a writer myself I know how much efforts and blood and sweat and time is needed to write a book. And I wouldn't just criticize a book if I just read the name of the author. But since I have read 5 Point Someone, 2 States, One Night at ethe Call Centre, 3 mistakes of my life. I get a fair idea about the writing, the ccharacters and whether it suited my taste.
So ofcourse, I wasn't planning on picking any of his book, ever again. But I took one for the team. And read it for my friend who said it was great .

Faced with this dilemma, I decided to read Half Girlfriend because I didn't want to be critical about something I hadn't read.
So against all my better judgment, I picked up this book and started reading.

I had found a screenshot making the rounds of social networks with some verrry derogatory remark to the female protagonist and it had made me really angry. So when my friend said the protagonist was romantic and charming - I wondered wha? (Yes, I made a novel reference to "wha" that's the name of the bar/club where Madhav and Riya meet again in New York. But I am getting too far ahead of myself. Let me not comment on the originality, but then again thankfully he didn't name it Fate or Destiny.)

Meet Chetan Bhagat, the first character who you get to meet, who is a grumpy and in some random book tour. Yes, the writer is referring to himself in the book. This is not it, he does it again and again. Thrice in total, with one being in the conversation of his characters along the lines of 'let's read some novel, you know the one by Chetan Bhagat.' (Would it have been soo hard to have made a fictional writer for the story? Or does seeing your name in the front cover wasn't enough? The whole book kind of lacks in originality you know? ) I am not trying to be mean but his character annoyed me the most, and thaaat is saying something.

Anyway, let's meet the Madhav - A horny, eyebrow fetishist basketball player who is also a prince of some random place in Bihar.

He "falls in love with Riya" as soon as he sees her playing basketball. Because he is a basketball player who is trying to get in the same college via a sports quota just like Riya. He offers her pointers during the game and thus starts the whole stalking 'love story.'

So they both get in some prestigious college in Delhi where even "the grass speaks English". They become quick friends and we read more about how tall and pretty Riya is. And how sweaty she gets when she plays basketball in shorts. And how she has basically the best eyebrow game Madhav has ever seen. Not once, there has been any distinguishing factor to her.

Their friendship grows. And the conversations grow even more bland. I have better conversations with my relatives than what Riya and Madhav have.

Anyway, Madhav is in love with Riya. Riya of course thinks of him as her best friend.
He tries to make her see him in more than a friend way. And this is where the problem starts. Oh and why the novel is named Half Girlfriend.


Riya is definitely "not comfortable" with his physical advances and yet he persists. There are a LOT of instances where she makes it quite clear that what he is doing is NOT appreciated by her.

This is from the book -

" 'She stopped and glared at me until I let go',
'Madhav, please understand, I'm not comfortable with all this.'
'Control yourself Madhav'
'She tried to extricate herself. I didn't let go.'
'Can you just let me go? You are hurting me.'
'Riya come on. I want you.' "

And it only gets worse. Now we come to the part of the very degrading and derogatory comment. The one making the rounds of the social network as I had previously said.

" 'I said no,' She said, her voice firm

'I'm at my limit, Riya.' I grabbed her shoulders.

'Madhav, I haven't seen this side of you. You are using physical force on me.'

Yes Madhav, that's potentially rape-y. And you don't help when you say "deti he to de yato kat le." Which is crass, crude and god help me degrading in every possible way.

Thankfully, the heroine has the common sense and dignity to leave.

God help me I was skimming through the whole monotonous dialouges and the whole "Oh shit, saying that was a bad idea."

You know you are torturing yourself by reading this book is when one of major plot conflict comes from a crude sentence and around half a dozen or more pages goes in that.

Oh and here's a gem. So Madhav now realizing that I have disrespected the girl, degrading her in the process, and she is obviously mad and doesn't want to talk to me. So what will I do? Stalk her, Of course! (In his own word, he justified stalking her because she wouldn't return his calls or reply or talk to him.)

Anyway, finally she agrees to talk to him. (After he had stalked her to some changing room) and he asked her to talk to her.

She hasn't, thankfully, forgiven him completely. But she wants to move past the whole incident (understandably so.)

SPOILER ALERT


Anyway she is getting married. At 19. No one is forcing her. She is dropping out of college. Because she is rich girl and she has a money to fall back on if doesn't wanna do a degree. She just wanna get away from her sexist relative. (The irony, but okay.)

So she leaves for London marrying her childhood rakhi brother (because he is such a great match. *cough* rich *cough*.) And Madhav ends up sad, messing up all the interviews.

And what's with EVERY interview panel in A CB book that wants an 'honest' candidate? Anyway he declines all offers and comes back to his village to aid hi mother run a school.

Lot of monotonous narration with Bill Gates making guests appearances.
And Madhav running into Riya again in 2 years. She is divorced and hence available. And Madhav is as horny as ever.

She teaches him English by making him read Chetan Bhagat novel. Okaaaay.

And she leaves him there with a Dear John note that went like - I'm paraphrasing, hey I'm dying of cancer. In 3 months. Sorry about not reciprocating your feelings. But now I love you. Okay? Dont try to find me. Marry someone and all. Cool? Ok bye now.

So then like the crazy stalker he is, he goes after her. I mean at least respect the dying girl's wish. But NO.

So he goes back to her place. Tries to find her. Using his "Royal" connections to make bank managers give him her bank details. Inquire in her work. Go to her house. He does not find her.

Then he receives these mysterious journals of Riya where she basically provides with all the backstory because the the writer was too lazy to develop the plot. And oh hey she ain't dead.

Now he is overwhelmed and calls her a bitch. To which Chetan Bhagat asks him to mind his language. Waaow.
Let me just mention- Chetan Bhagat chapters are from the first person pov and so is Madhav's. And they just happen anywhere and you're like wait who's head are we in? Neither place is nice to be in. But weirdly, I'll take CB's POV over Madhav.

Anyway,
Of course she isn't! She just faked the whole thing to get rid of him (in my opinion. Who wouldn't?)
But no, now that he knows she's alive he goes to New York to find her. 3 months of stalking still nothing.

Finally on the last day, he conveniently finds her while she croons You're beautiful by James Blunt. And Riya just falls right back in his stalker arms. Because hey, dude stalked me from India to Manhatten. And he found me in Manhatten. When I dont even perform with my real name. THATS NOT scary at all. So yes, I will sleep with him. All communicated with no words and all stares. Because writing actual meaningful conversations is soo overrated.

Anyway, something more happened with the lines of 'happy ending I think. I am keeping that much out so that I haven't basically ranted the whole plot.
You pick the book and READ to know. Why should I be the only one to suffer?!

All I know is I was happy, jubilant, ecstatic that this ordeal ended. AND the rant is over. I'm never picking up his book again no matter what my friends thinks.

P.s People who will call me a Lit Snob for this review, sure, I like good books and I can't lie. And CB fans who will say he makes people read, good for him. :)

[Sameer Kamat]

I see that some folks have already rated this book, when it hasn't even been released. So I thought why not review it as well, before reading it.

To be honest, I haven't read any of his books yet. So, I'm not going to be judgemental (look Ma, no rating!). But I've read enough reviews to conclude that the reactions are generally polarised.

For the lazy ones who don't want to type out a detailed review after reading it, here are a couple of templates that might help. Just edit it and you have your own review ready.

Reaction 1: Loved it

CB rocks!!! Wen i used to see his ads in papers with free chapters, i was like, 'yeaaaaah CB's new book is coming out!'
n mom wud say, 'Don't get excited, it's called an editorial'.
And then many days later when I told mom that he's now getting a full-page editorial on the front page, she said, 'It's an ad' and i was like 'yeaaahhh, CB's new book is coming out!'
Den I purchased it for 15% discount and i hugged the flipkart delivery guy when he gave book to me and he was like all senti and stuff. the characters were so real, i could literally touch them.
i cried after the book got over. it was like the best frickin' book in the whole world.
waiting for the remaining half of the girlfriend to appear in the sequel!

Reaction 2: Hated it

CB walks into the bar...and lowers it, yet again.
It is appalling to see the quality of writing. There is no plot, the characters are flatter than Coke left out in the open for 3 days.
This has not been written for discerning readers. It has been written for Bollywood producers. Why doesn't he take us out of the picture and give his script directly to them?
The part where I was the happiest was when the book got over. I can now go back to reading The Fountainhead...for the 4th time, coz it didnt make sense the first 3 times.
But hey, you know what, at least it's 'intellectual'.


P.S. This is just a tongue-in-cheek review to entertain folks who are waiting impatiently for the book release. No offense meant to anyone. I think CB has managed to do (for the struggling Indian publishing industry) what no other writer has ever done. Hats off and good luck to him!

[Dr. Appu Sasidharan (Dasfill) · Rating 2 out of 5]

Chetan Bhagat is someone who writes books for the majority of the public. We can’t say those creations are literary masterpieces. Still, the entertainment factor associated with them was pretty high, and I liked reading his initial three books until I came across his fourth and fifth books.

Right from its name, this book has many problems associated with it. The characters, narration, and even the locations where the story happens felt tailor-made for a movie. I was sure that a movie would soon follow after reading this book. Like this book, the silver screen version was equally disappointing (I loved its songs, though). I don’t know why the author crafted a book like this. I am still happy that he was able to pull back his audience and satisfy his readers in a few of his later creations, though.
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[Rohini Karmakar · Rating 2 out of 5]

I generally refrain from reviewing books because I know the hard work that goes into penning down 250 odd pages of literature. I refrain from being unnecessarily harsh on someone, when I have a fair idea of the pain they must have gone through.
But this one compelled me to write, not to praise its excellence, or even to rant about its mediocrity. Infact, I was shocked at the insincerity of the author.
To begin with, he didn't even attempt at writing a book, he wrote a screenplay. But he should have at least put in some effort to present it as a novel in its paperback format. The story is as lame as the language it is written in. Forget nuances and layers, the structure is not even a straight line. It has no purpose, no journey and thereby no destination. And could someone kindly enlighten me on the significance of the title.
As for the literary quality, the lesser spoken the better. For some unknown reason, Mr. Bhagat considers himself the common Indian's writer and as much as he defends them in the battle of masses versus the elite, he is the one taking them for granted. He considers the common Indian man to be IQ less, illogical and having no sense or appreciation of literature.There is no other way I can justify his coming up with 'Half Girlfriend'.

I cannot fathom what moved Mr. Mohit Suri, who has already bought the rights of the novel for his next screen adaptation, to tears. The only kind of tears this book can draw out is those out of sheer frustration!

[Ronak Gajjar · Rating 1 out of 5]

Half Review - Full ka toh zamana hi noi hain!
Concept: -1.0/5.0
Execution: -1.5/5.0
Characters Bespoken: 0.0 /5.0
Cover: 2.0/5.0
Overall: 0.0/5.0
My hand froze in mid-air. You cannot pick up a chocolate when someone has just mentioned a death.
- Like you really really need to mention it!!

Why it always have to be the same cycle:
• Humara bechara helpless Hero[Our poor helpless Hero] (**Zero) – Check
• The antique Heroine (**Jisko pyaar karne main koi dikkat noi bas saath rehne main nakhra hain) – Check
• Wahi ghisa pita college [Same old college scenes] – Check
• Picking out one state of India [Iss baar Bihar ki baari hain] – Check
• English language ki taarifein – Check
• Detailed version of Heroine’s clothing (**lipstick ki brand taq pata hain humko thanks to CB!) – Check
• And the usual story – Meeting – Talking – Falling for each other – Fighting – Not fighting – Running away – someone brings another one back – happy ending – spices added – sad ending! – Check!
You know what?

For writing this trash out and misleading youth with these craps!

[Ankit · Rating 4 out of 5]

I think Chetan Bhagat gets way more stick than he deserves. The truth is, he writes and India reads. Most of his criticism stems from the purists or the "hard-core literature fans" who can't stand the fact that he is the most popular writer from India. Yes, his writing style is nothing compared to an Ayn Rand, a Rohinton Mistry or a Khaled Hosseini, but someone who is selling so much must be doing something right. And he is.

Bhagat always takes up issues which resonate with the masses. In Half Girlfriend, the protagonist is a Bihari guy named Madhav who has a hard time speaking English. Now what can be more common than that? I can envision thousands of youth in Bihar, who will never read "To Kill a Mocking Bird", but who will readily see themselves in Madhav and will have no difficulty in comprehending Bhagat's simplistic yet charming writing style. The beauty of this process is, some, if not many, will start seeing reading in a different light and will become become readers for life (Hopefully picking up books with more intellectual depth and profound life lessons). This, I feel, is Bhagat's biggest contribution. The repeated references to Madhav's poor English is annoying at times, but almost every book has a phase where the reader fights within himself to either put it down or soldier along. I chose to read on. And the book did hold my attention. Till the last page. And mind you, I am not a guy who reads "Only Chetan Bhagat Novels". I have read my fair share of classics and some have bored me to death. Half Girlfriend had me hooked. Its a charming love story. You will end up rooting for Madhav (Well, if you don't hold a blinkered opinion of Bhagat's work, that is).

There is the inevitable drama. Almost Bollywood like. But it is Chetan Bhagat we are talking about. Will you ever dare to criticise Khaled Hosseini for describing the beauty of Afghanistan? Will you lambast Dan Brown for going into minute details of Roman Architecture? Well, no. You will just say that its their own style. This slightly surreal drama is Bhagat's style. And its good. He has his own niche. It's a different story altogether that a new "generation" of young writers flourished in India after Five Point Someone, trying to imitate Bhagat's style and ended up hurting his already many times questioned reputation. Bhagat touches on the problem of rural education in India and the book also suggests ways to improve one's English. The techniques may seem too raw for the average Goodreads user or a regular reader, but in truth, they are effective. A 15 year boy reading this book in Bihar will understand this more than you and I will ever will.

Half Girlfriend is a very good read. Unputdownable. A sweet love story. An avid reader can easily finish it in two-three sessions. It will be lapped up by India's youth. It is a bestseller for sure. Chetan Bhagat's legend becomes stronger. I just hope that people digest the fact that he is a good writer who knows his strengths and sticks by them.

“Never forget what you are, for surely the world will not. Make it your strength. Then it can never be your weakness. Armour yourself in it, and it will never be used to hurt you.”

Kudos to Bhagat for going on despite all the criticism. You Sir, have all my respect.

(From a fan who has read enough books to not be classified as a "Only Chetan Bhagat books guy.")

[Manan Puri · Rating 2 out of 5]

1. A (portrayed as) loser guy: Check
2. A girl supposedly out of his league (and one page dedicated to the introduction her looks): Check
3. Guy's love at first sight (because of smell of her perfume or any random reason): Check
4. His pursuit (in his head) to get her (to his bed): Check
5. Girl eventually falling for him after incessant attempts (for #4): Check
6. One page dedicated to the love making: Check
7. Weave a story around 1-6: Check

'Friends with Benefits' or "I can walk Englis' is a more apt title for the book than Half Girlfriend, which might have happened because CB picked any two random consecutive words he saw on the first page he opened.

This time, its a screenplay waiting for Deepika Padukone to accept the girl's role and the movie can kick-off to make 100cr. Just when you think the 'twists' in the plot can't get any more miraculous, CB comes up with another one which can give randomness another random beating. He even randomly praises his brilliance as a writer for, wait a sec...improving your English!!

Overall, the book will sell for the same reason SRK's HNY would make 100cr! In the end, CB's popularity is at that level where he can tell his detractors "Padta hai to pad, warna kat le"!!!

[Srikari · Rating 3 out of 5]

3 stars!!!


Did I LOVE this book? No. Did I LOATHE it then? No. Am I crazy? NO. :P

I was so confused as to how i was going to review this book because i had mixed feelings. But i can say one thing for sure, this was the only book by Chetan Bhagat i could stand!! I like him as a writer (LOVE actually) but his stories never really get to me)

Anyway, This book was about a guy called Madhav. He comes from a "not so royal anymore" royal family from the state of Bihar. Bihar is one of the most backward states in India and is generally looked down upon by many. Since he lived in Bihar most of his life his english is pretty screwed up and I for one am not the judgmental type when it comes to not knowing english, and i also thought this book was better because of this detail. SO when he goes to New Delhi, for college (to the best college in India actually) he is made fun of for his spoken english. This is where he meets Riya, a tall, Beautiful girl who just like him plays basket ball for the collage team. They get talking and eventually become reallllyyyy close. But wait there is one problem, according to her it was just friendship but according to him it was just LOVE, hmmm not the first time you have seen a guy friendzoned. This guy decides to take it to another level, he kisses her, keeps DESPERATELY BEGGING her to love him back, even if she keeps brushing him off. and all i wanted to say was.. " Hey i just found this on the ground, it looks like your DIGNITY, you better hang on to that!"
It wasnt just his fault.... No. It was her fault as well, even if the guy u friendzoned kisses u and asks to for more u say "NO." but that is not what Ms. Riya does, she leads him on. She makes him hungry for more and she goes to his room after playin basket ball cuz she wants a nap...!
and i am just here like

so when she goes to his house to rest, he gets all horny and she says "no I am not comfortable with this, blah blah blah..." and he LITERALLY says " fuck me or fuck off" so she gets offended and tells him that she doesnt want to be friends anymore. He goes to apologize but she tells him that she was getting married to her family friend Rohan. and dropping out of collage So guess what he is heart broken.
Just when i was like



The book actually got better and better. Madhav though not fully recovered from his heart break , goes back to his village to help run a village school which was started by his mother t provide free education to the poor. He meets divorced Riya again and she offers him help with his english as he had to make a speech for BILL GATES who was coming on a visit to India for sponsoring organisations working for the society's betterment. He needed a speech that convinces Gates foundation to provide him the grant.
The whole part from here, INSPIRED me a lot! It dealt with major issues that India faces today and how we can achieve anything with determination and hard work. It really touched me, how much of suffering ppl in Indian villages face, especially the kids. This book was really really really making me LOVE IT



This is again when it started going down again! He gets the grant and when he looks around for Riya she disappears leaving him a letter saying she has lung cancer and that she has only a little time left and not to come look for her. He is hear broken again. Time passes by and he gets her journal and finds out that she was FAKING being affected by CANCER!! ARE U FUCKING KIDDING ME?!?!



Its like Chetan Bhagat couldn't think about any other reason so just put up the first thing that came to his mind! *throws stone at random pedestrian*

He remembers that it was always her dream to sing in the bars of NYC and goes there looking for her!! WHAT HAPPENED TO YOUR SENSES (If u ever had any , that is.) NEW YORK IS NOT A GROCERY STORE, where u can look for ur mom in case u lose her.*face palms so hard that her face is completely flat now*
He finds her nevertheless and she says she did it cuz she was scared of commitment.....


Also at the end I figured out that the "not knowing english" was just left there hanging in mid air. I thought this aspect ,if it were made use of in a more substantial way would have made it a little more interesting.

So the book wraps up with a happily ever after. He gets the girl, he gets the kid. YAY ME!

[Nu Jahat Jabin · Rating 1 out of 5]

বই - খাঁটি বাংলা ভাষায় বইয়ের টাইটেল অনুবাদ করার পর জিনিসটা আর যাই হোক দৃষ্টি সুখকর কিছু না। নাম দেখে যদি খানিকটা ও আগ্রহ জেগে থাকে তাহলে নামটা বাংলায় অনুবাদ করে নেন, সেই অনুবাদ শুনতে যেমন লাগে বইটাও ঠিক সেই মানের!!

জনরা - একটা পারফেক্ট বলিউড মুভি স্ক্রিপ্ট!!

নিকোলাস স্পার্ক এর বই পড়ার আগেই তার বই উপজিব্য করে বানানো মুভি দেখেছি। এরপরে যতবারই নিকোলাসের কোন বই পড়ি মনে হয় মুভির জন্য লিখছেন। চেতন ভগতের ব্যাপারটা আবার ঠিক উল্টো,তার বই পড়ে মনে হয়েছিল পুরাই ছিনেমা!! পরে দেখি আসলেই সেই বই থেকে ছিনেমাই বানানো হয়।
এই বইটাও তার ব্যতিক্রম না পারফেক্ট বলিউড মুভির সব মাল মশলাই আছে,মান অভিমান, কিস, দূরে সরে যাওয়া আবার নাটকীয় মিলন ব্লা ব্লা ব্লা, শুধু চটকদার কিছু গান নাচ যোগ করে দিলেই সোনায় সোহাগা!!

বিনোদন নিতে চাইলে এই বই ঠিক আছে,বাস ট্রেনে মাঝে মাঝে হালকা বই পড়তে ইচ্ছা হয় সেইখানের এই বইটা তুলে রাখতে পারেন অনায়াসে । তবে ব্যক্তিগত ধারনা লেখকের গল্প শুরু করার স্টাইল , গল্পের ধারা চেঞ্জ করার সময়ে এসেছে।
ভাল ইঞ্জিনিয়ারিং ভার্সিটি, সুগঠিত মাসল সম্মৃদ্ধ নায়ক সেক্সি নায়িকা........ আর কত? এই ইঞ্জিনিয়ারিং ভার্সিটি এর ব্যাপারটা মা মা আমি পাশ করেছি টাইপ হাস্যকর লেভেলে চলে গেছে.

আচ্ছা আরেকটা জিনিস চেতন ভগতের সংখ্যা প্রিয়তা এত বেশি কেন? আমি যে কয়টা বই পড়েছি সবগুলোতেই কোন না কোন নাম্বার আছে :o

[Umesh Kesavan · Rating 1 out of 5]

I thought Chetan Bhagat can't get worser than " Revolution 2020" but after reading his latest novel , Revolution 2020 feels like a better book. So,looking forward to his next novel so that I can feel that "half girlfriend" is a better one.

[Nikhat Hetavkar]

Hah. I've read every Chetan Bhagat book(if we can call those sentences lumped together a book) only to argue with my friends as to why I absolutely depise his writing.

So again a CB novel arrives on the market. And every social media page is flooded with my friends( I may have to disown them after this) exclaiming "Chetan Bhagat - My favourite author" "The best author" and likewise idiotic comments.

After flipkart taunting me for weeks, I finally decided to pick up the book and form a well developed opinion about the hate this stupid title with its smug announcement of its bollywood movie along with the book release inspire in me.

Thankfully this time I did not actually BUY the book. I borrowed it from a friend.

3 pages into the book and my brain already in a frenzy about the things I find wrong with the bundle of paper I held in my hands.

I looked up to see my bookshelf staring at me and obviously judging me.
( I dont have a hyper active imagination for nothing)

Nope, I decided. Life's way too short to read shitty books like these when there are so many great books I still need to read as my shelf reminded me not so gently.

NO. Just plain NO.

Life's way too short.

And I am not picking this book up again even if it means never getting to correct moronic idiots in their rant about the brilliance of CB.


I am DONE.

[Ananya · Rating 1 out of 5]

Worst book written in the history of literature.
Period.
PS - I don't like to give 1 star ratings but this is the first book to receive it.

[Priyanka · Rating 1 out of 5]

Actual rating - HALF star

So the story goes like this:

>Bihari Boy Madhav has trouble speaking English
>He notices Delhi Girl Riya, get this - only because she is tall(applause)
>The girl is of course tall, slender, pretty with long legs and long fingers. (Not to forget, beautiful eyebrows)
>He makes eye contact but does not fall in love(gasp!) but is determined to talk to her.
I quote ::
But I felt something deep inside, strong enough for my heart to say, You have to talk to this girl at least once in your life"
**Crazy person Alert!**
>They become friends
>Guy wants to be more than friends
>Girl says no
>He thinks the only way to get her is to sleep with her

This is where I will stop. Read the book at your own risk. Knowing that you will never be able to "un-read" it. Knowing that you could have spent that time reading something else(I would suggest reading a user manual, it at least makes sense).

Why is it that people can't get over the "A guy and a girl can never be friends" crap?
Also, this book is wrong on so many levels! Why would you do something even after the lady repeatedly says 'No'.
A No is a No. It is never a yes. I can't believe the author who claims to be a "feminist" could write something like this.
Chetan Bhagat has fallen to new found lows to write a book only in hopes of making it into a masala blockbuster movie.

[R.k. Bisht · Rating 1 out of 5]

A Huge Putoff {eyes rolling}

There are better books out there and there better writers out there! Even if you don't want to read Rushdie or Jhumpa Lahiri there are select few who write contemporary, interesting stories! I'd personally recommend Zero Defect if you want a fast paced, and thought provoking read.



There is also a lesser known (among indians) bookShantaram though not written by and indian author is an interesting contemporary book set in Mumbai.

So, open your mind and read something better for change ;)

[Tamoghna Biswas · Rating 1 out of 5]

If the title didn't make you feel cringy, I don't know what will. It's pretty pointless to talk about something which is as rubbish as this one. And as I'm not currently able to read new books(maybe for the next 2 weeks)...I think it's best to write a few words about this one, from which I think all should flee. Okay, I know any sensible person won't bother to read it after the title only, just know that I did it because I was stuck at a place with nothing else.

The story will infuriate you. Really, it's bound to. A middle-class Bihari boy who can't speak English falls in love( Erm...it is actually a disgusting category of infatuation) with a tall girl from Delhi who speaks English as if it is her vernacular language. Actually the thing is, the way I see, he was just hoping to get laid. And the senseless story drones on and on about their ridiculous affections, their preposterous philosophies, with equally irrational consequences of everything they do...so much so, if you haven't thrown away the book already, you will be begging for it to end. You have got to learn nothing else, just how much every protagonists of every silly stories can suffer, how obsession actually means true love, and girls can be attractive only by their looks. Basically the tale of a misogynist paranoid, though, he thinks he "respects" girls.

That's the thing. I've had read every work of Chetan Bhagat till this one, and then I took a vow to never read anything fictional by him anymore. That was 2016. I've kept my word.

Also, I thought it pointless to waste more words on this book.

[Navaneeta · Rating 1 out of 5]

The sense of achievement that fills me up as I move to mark this book as "I am finished" is enormous. I am finally, actually finished with Bhagat and his scripts. This was my most-difficult-to read-Bhagat, more than Three Mistakes of My Life or Revolution 2020 for that matter. You see Chetan Bhagat and I go back a long way. Bhagat was like this cool guy with whom I can be myself when we met with Five Point Someone. Those days when I was immersed in the sadness of Velutha in the backwaters of Kerala or fighting a losing battle with Sydney Carton in the streets of Paris or just dying in the quarantined city of Oran, Ryan and Hari seemed like the best friends just waiting for me out there.

I felt obliged to read each book that Bhagat wrote. As he kept writing, our relationship changed. I became more of an elder sister indulging little Chetan's "i-am-so-proud-of-myself" moments. His criticism of Rushdie made me cringe as did his "superior" opinions regarding boring old vultures engaged in English literature. Gradually little Chetan became the most influential person in free India after Ekta Kapoor. I watched his decline growth with amazement. Someone somewhere had said something stupid about how it's impossible to fool all the people all the time or some such nonsense, yet look at this wonderful literary entrepreneur who just keeps on surging ahead, breaking all the taboos! People today are reading more than they ever did!! I guess as a science and management student, Bhagat internalised and based his empire on Einstein's famous premise about human stupidity. Through his works, he propounds this basic tenet again and again. Here's one for Science; take that you English Puritans!

As to Half Girlfriend, well, the girl is sexy and hot in her shorts. She is equally sexy and hot in salwar-kameez. She is even more disturbingly hot when she's sick in bed. She is immensely alluring in a saree. She is sleazier than a Honey Singh song when in a dress. She is of course very beautiful and sexy and hot. She is a girl. She doesn't want to have sex despite being so sexy and hot. I think her name is Riya. That's redundant. She has wonderful legs limbs.

The End.

[Amit · Rating 4 out of 5]

4.25 ⭐

GENRE - FICTION

Once upon a time when I was a huge Chetan Bhagat fan...5/5 for that period of my life.This is the 3rd book that I had picked up to read way back in 2014.
If I was to read this book today I would have given it 4/5 However I would like to thank this author for inspiring me to take books 📚to read. Many Indians of my generation would agree that Mr. Chetan Bhagat is the reason why they started reading 📚.
Well after reading this book I completely stopped reading Romantic and Love stories genre's not just because I got bored of the genre's but since than truly believed that I would not be inclined towards Books and Movies for Love Stories but would be the Hero of own Love Story.
Lol nonetheless if you are beginning to read at that tender age where Love Stories appear like fairy tales to you please go ahead and read this Book you shall surely like it.


Thank you 🙏

[Amit Mishra · Rating 3 out of 5]

This is the story of a poor guy and a rich girl. The boy falls in love with Riya but she told to me believe that I can not be your girlfriend only I can be your half girlfriend. And from the story begins. In a nutshell, It's a romantic novel that has a certain twist and turns but ends happily as all Inidna movie does. His writings are not different from the script of an Indian cinema.
However, the novel exposes the hypocrisy of our society. How essential English has become in a country where the national language is Hindi. It exposes the two face of rich society as well. This one is the best from Chetan Bhagat in my opinion.

[Vaibhav Anand · Rating 1 out of 5]

I haven't read this, nor do I intend to. Funny that Goodreads allows people to rate books that haven't even released.

[Shoa Khan · Rating 1 out of 5]

what a piece of trash..this book actually managed to fall short of my already meagre expectations.
Chetan Bhagat has over-exploited way too many stereotypes in this book.
The stuff about girls giggling senselessly at just about anything a rich guy says is especially repulsive.

[Aastha Swaroop · Rating 4 out of 5]

It is one of those books you just pick up and then cannot put down. Mainly because you want believe in it. You want to believe that such love still exists.. such coincidences still happen... that fate gives your love a second chance. I love how Chetan Bhagat writes. He does not care about using heavy vocabulary like most of the Indian authors which personally breaks my interest in reading because referring a dictionary every second line is no fun. He relates to today's youth and his stories totally reflect that. Do not read this book if you are one of those who read to add to their literary shelves... this is no Macbeth...Ayn Rand or Khalid Housseini... this is a simple book which can touch your heart and leave you with a smile on your face...it sure did on mine :)

[Vineet · Rating 1 out of 5]

Throughout the novel, Bhagat mesmerizes you with careful written description of things. Here’s a gem, ‘the club sandwich, which had a tomato, cheese and lettuce filling.’ Yeah. Okay. Good. Thank you for telling me. Also, they are downright hilarious. See, ‘my voice firmer with food inside me’ or ‘I got into a yellow taxi.’

This novel doesn’t even have those cute awwww moments, you know? All the scenes are so overdone in books and cinemas of the past that you feel they are plagiarized, like girlfriend is reading but the sun is on her, so you block the sun, girlfriend removes a rice grain from your face so you put more grains on it. It’s all cringe-worthy. The middle section of the book seems like it’s lifted from Swadesh.

The dialogues, The dialogues are so unengaging. Every dialogue is followed by the meaning of it. I mean if someone is concerned, happy, sad, anything, you should be able to make it out with his dialogue. Bhagat is so unconfident in his dialogues that most of them are followed by what the dialogue meant, he throws it on your face, look he is concerned now, look he is hurt now.

Also, I think Bhagat self assumes that he is the voice of this generation and he raises all sorts of issues through this book. Hangover of What Young India Wants, I think. In one instance, Madhav (Bhagat) says why no one speaks in Hindi and you’d wonder if Madhav would change that, but he says it and then he starts learning English. These issues, go nowhere, nothing is further mentioned. I think if you raise 200 issues in 200 pages, you raise none and that’s what happens here.

And why this title? Why? When you read this title you think it’s about friends with benefits or something like that, but this title has nothing to do with the story being told. Just because Riya says this once, we get this title? This title is like the click-bait headlines we see online, a marketing gimmick, so you get curious. It’s just weird that a book of 250 pages doesn’t even talk about this concept of half-girlfriend in details. Not even a proper meaningful para.

In the end, this book is lazily written with a single objective that it is picked by some movie producer. It feels like a screenplay, nothing else. As a book, it is so poor and devoid of content, filled with the most generic of description. The detailing that the book uses are so stupid, like when Madhav is on the station, he tells us he ate puri-aloo. Yeah, so what? Is it a essential thing to say? There are no book-like things, we are just given briefs, about the location, I’m on a railway station, okay, the characters, he’s a snob, okay. There’s nothing about how the station looks, what is going on there, what is the narrator thinking while he’s on the station, or why a character is a snob, what’s his motivation in life. There’s no depth to the proceedings, no dialogues make you pause and wonder, nothing in the characters to make you cheer for them, just plain boring stuff, a simple plot to sit a movie on.


If you want to enjoy this novel even a bit then I suggest you skim through it, don’t pause and think what happened, try to read it in two hours then you might enjoy it.


(This review was edited to be spoiler-free. To read my full review, head over to- http://www.thelostdigga.in/2014/10/ch...)

[Sailesh Mohanty · Rating 2 out of 5]

I read it. Or rather I survived it. It was delivered today, nicely wrapped up with a cool bookmark and that is where all the good things about reading this book ends.

I am certain this book will be a blockbuster, a game changer of sorts and Chetan Bhagat will continue to dish out overtly dramatized Bollywood scripts as novels. I am also certain that Chetan Bhagat uses a software that does the scripting for him.. All he does is probably enter the lead character names, the location of the story and the software churns out story after story till CB decides this is it. Almost like one of those Facebook apps that let's us know which Game of Thrones character we are and we keep on clicking it till we get a character of our choice.

***Spoiler Alert(LOL!!) ****

So, Chetan Bhagat after adeptly portraying life at an IIT, dramatizing excessively a love affair at an IIM, in this book targets the next most revered educational institution in the country - Delhi University, St. Stephen's College.

The story follows a horny lad from Bihar who gets raunchy whenever he is in close proximity with a girl, who looks down upon his roots and his home state in almost every second page and who has this burning desire to kiss, anytime anywhere. His love interest is Riya, a confused, rich girl. So confused and so rich that for reasons best known to Chetan Bhagat she drops out of St Stephen's after managing to get in. And why? To get married to an older, richer guy who also happens to be the same guy she has tied Rakhi to for years. Clearly, Chetan Bhagat's book dishing software likes Game of Thrones. She is also averse to kissing, for 200 odd pages the guy tries to get her to kiss him, on rooftops, in parks, in theatres, in boys hostel room, basically every place a horny pervert deems appropriate for a little smoochy woochy. But her answer is always no.. Such is the frequency of her rejections that as a reader you would start wondering... 'Cmon now you confused rich heartless brat.. Its only a kiss'. The quest for kiss continues till what seems like an eternity, the love story goes around in circles, subplots are clichéd. So after 262 pages of a very mediocre love story, it ends in the most Chetan Bhagat-ish way possible... A kid!! Little Shyam makes an appearance in the last page.

At this point you, as a reader would be aware of certain facts about Chetan Bhagat, he loves horny dudes, he loves drama, he loves impromptu making out sessions and he loves happy endings, so much so that he scripts the most ridiculous twist and brings a character out from the dead. Ekta Kapoor move over... New player is in town. What Chetan Bhagat does not love, apparently, is a gripping story line. May be I am being too harsh, may be he has the potential to be India's Murakami. But if you base your novel on plot twist with the ridiculously lecherous line 'dena hai toh de warna kat le(fuck me or fuck off)' and then spend the rest of the novel trying to pass it off as unrequited love... It just does not cut it for me.

Devoid of humor and a cat mouse chase that's more predictable than Poonam Pandey's next striptease, this one of the worst books I have laid my hands on in recent times. Thats 3 hours and 150 bucks I am never getting back

Verdict - Wait for the movie instead... Atleast it will have some cool songs and Alia Bhatt.

[Avanthika · Rating 1 out of 5]

HALF of anything, literally ANYTHING irritates me. The problem is, when I want something, I will have all of it for myself or I won't bother to give a damn about it. Half of that particular thing, according to me is pointless and useless. Say for example, my grades, either they'll be "A" or "E". Strictly I won't stand in-between the two extremes. I just don't understand what intrigued me to buy this IITian's stupid-desi-just-written-for-the-sake-of-bollywood novel that revolves around pointless-meaningless HALF- RELATIONSHIP between the Bihari Madhav & moody Riya of St.Stevens, New Delhi.
The male protagonist forces Riya to get into a relationship, she accepts to be his half-girlfriend, to change the "half" into "full", he forces her to have sex with him, she walks away, he woos her, atlast she accepts the apologies and stuffs her marriage invitation into his hands & walks away with a rich guy.
There you are putting a intermission board, after which she returns divorced. And the rest of the story is what happens in most of Yash Chopra films and Aashique-2.
Please See, I don't know in which category I've to put this thing called a "relationship" between the two into. I feel naive to call that a relationship at the first place.

Even before the release of the book & just with the start of pre-ordering, Chetan Bagat announced his director for this desi-love story with Deepika Padukone & Arjun Kapoor in the lead roles, as I expected :D
Dear Chetan, you're not a national sensation anymore when it comes to contemporary writings. There are writers who are striking the chord at the right place with their simple-witty way of tale-telling. If you want to knock the doors of bollywood, you can directly approach them with the hype & reputation you have. Stop annoying the readers with no-so-catchy storyline like these. You're seriously annoying.
Complete waste of three hours -_-

[Trishia Nashtaran · Rating 1 out of 5]

ব্লকবাস্টার হিন্দি সিনেমার স্ক্রিপ্ট পড়লাম যেন। চেতন ভগতের বই আগে পড়িনি। তার বই অবলম্বনে তৈরি একটা হিন্দি সিনেমা দেখা আছে শুধু। তার সব গল্পই বলিউডবান্ধব নাকি একটি চলচ্চিত্রের সাফল্যের পরে তার লেখায় বলিউড ভর করেছে সেটা বলতে পারব না তাই। এই বই থেকে শুধুমাত্র বলিউডি সিনেমাই হতে পারে, এটুকু জানি। পৌরুষদীপ্ত (পড়ুন হর্নি) দেহাতি নায়ক, সুতন্বী দুঃখী ধনীর দুলালী নায়িকা, ফিল্মি (পড়ুন ন্যাকাচু) প্রেম, নায়িকার নখরামো, নায়কের হিরোগিরি, সেক্সিজম, প্রবল জাতীয়তাবাদ, বিদেশি লোকেশন সব আছে। বলিউডপ্রেমী যারা হিন্দি শিখতে শিখতে ইংলিশ শেখার সময় পান নাই তারা মৌলিক ইংলিশ শিখতে বইটা পড়তে পারেন। বহুদিন না, আমি জীবনেও এই মাত্রার আবর্জনা পড়ি নাই। এই বই আমার ব্যক্তিগত বইবিচারের মানদণ্ডে এক নতুন মাইলফলক। আমার চেনা কেউ পড়তে চাইলে আমারটা নিয়ে নেবেন। কেনার দরকার নেই।

[Shishir Chaudhary · Rating 3 out of 5]

Ordinary life is undervalued, as G K Chesterton puts it in his The Defense of Penny Dreadfuls, and is reflected quite strangely in the amount of hatred that popular fiction, in the form of paperbacks, attract. This strange phenomenon has accentuated lately to a higher level where a person reading Chetan Bhagat’s work is looked down upon. His work is openly termed as trash, vulgar and even an insult to literature. His work and likewise many other paperbacks - the Rs. 150 books - are no doubt ignorant in the literary sense just like not-so-popular literature is ignorant in an economic sense or a non-fiction on economics is ignorant in real sense. But some of these are not trash, vulgar and insults to literature – these are the actual "centers of a million flaming imaginations".

I read Chetan Bhagat's books for their entertainment quotients, and this book is high on it. And if one takes up this book without a Literary Snob's judgmental hat (irrespective of whether or not she has actually read what she believes to be good literature), she would conclude that this is indeed a good story.

This book reads more like a screenplay of a Hindi movie, a bit exaggerated but entertaining one at that. The writing isn't bad either - it is simple, normal, ordinary, everyday but not bad. To dismantle the pre-conceived notions of many, it is not a funny book with a hilarious plot as the title suggests - It is one serious love story with one of the most flawed protagonists I have come across. And that is where the problem lies. Bhagat, amidst all the proceedings, gets the characterization wrong. So, while you had started rooting for Madhav, one dialogue of his comes up and you decide to hate him for the rest of the book. But then again you see a better side of him and you end up being confused about him. The same holds for his mother, Rani Sahiba. But the gem of the story is definitely the half-girlfriend - Riya Somani. Bhagat comes up with a nice portrayal of a troubled poor rich girl from Lutyens' Delhi with her own set of ambitions. Right from the beginning you know she is the star of the story.

I read it in 6 hours with an overnight break in between and those were some good 6 hours spent. Recommended, if you like and are not judgmental of the better Hindi romantic movies. Not every movie needs to be a Lagaan or Hazaaron Khwaaishein Aisi - once in a while one can revel in Kuch Kuch Hota Hai and Ye Jawani Hai Deewani.