Chetan Bhagat

Chetan Bhagat (born 22 April 1974) is an Indian author and columnist who is one of the most widely read English-language novelists in India. Known for his accessible writing style and stories that reflect contemporary Indian society, Bhagat has sold over 7 million copies of his books, which have been translated into multiple Indian languages. Born in Delhi, Bhagat studied mechanical engineering at IIT Delhi and MBA at IIM Ahmedabad — India's two most prestigious educational institutions. He worked as an investment banker at Goldman Sachs in Hong Kong for over a decade before quitting to become a full-time writer. Bhagat's most famous novels include "Five Point Someone" (2004, about IIT students), "One Night @ the Call Center" (2005), "The 3 Mistakes of My Life" (2008), "2 States" (2009, about an inter-state marriage), "Revolutionary 2020" (2011), "Half Girlfriend" (2014), and "The Girl in Room 105" (2018). Several of his novels have been adapted into Bollywood films: "3 Idiots" (from "Five Point Someone"), "Kai Po Che!" (from "The 3 Mistakes of My Life"), "2 States," and "Half Girlfriend." Bhagat is also a columnist for Times of India and a popular motivational speaker. He has been named in TIME magazine's list of 100 Most Influential People (2010). While his work has been both commercially successful and critically divisive — with some critics calling his writing formulaic — there is no denying his impact on popular Indian English literature.