Tag: #one indiangirl

One Indian Girl : Book Review

About the book

  • Title : One Indian Girl
  • Author : Chetan Bhagat
  • Genre : Fiction
  • Subject : Feminism
  • Year of publication : 2016
  • Number of pages : 280

About the author

Chetan Bhagat is the author of sex bestselling novels – Five point someone, One night @ the call center , The 3 mistakes of my life, 2 States, Revolution 2020, Half Girlfriend.

In 2008, The New York Times called him ” the biggest- selling author in India’s history”. He is also a Filmfare-award-winning screenplay writer.

TIME magazine named him as one of the 100 most influential people in the world and Fast Company, USA, listed him as one of the 100 most creative people in business globally.

Chetan Bhagat went to college at IIT Delhi and IIM Ahmedabad, after which he worked in investment banking for a decade before quitting his job to become a full – time writer.

” To all Indian girls especially the ones who dare to dream and live life on their own terms.” – Chetan Bhagat

Analysis of the book

One Indian Girl is the story of Radhika Mehta, a worker at the Distressed Debt Group of Goldman Sachs, the investment bank.

The book tells us about that what if we are a girl, we should also have equal rights to live independently in the way what a boy lives.

“Why do people tell girls all this? You ask them to achieve things, but when they do, you can’t handle it.”

Summary of the story

The book starts with Radhika making arrangements regarding her marriage with Brijesh Gulati who works in the Facebook company in San Francisco. She later reveals her childhood and life in Delhi, as a nerdy personality in contrast to her elder sister Aditi.

While trying to engage conversation with Brijesh, she is unexpectedly contacted by Debasish “Debu” Sen who wishes to meet her, to which she refuses. She later, meets him in the gym and then there occurs the flashbacks to four years ago.

When Radhika began her job training at Goldman Sachs, she was introduced to Debu and then the two started dating, eventually starting a live in relationship. When Radhika gets a bonus of 150,000 dollars and tells Debu, he doesn’t react as Radhika expects and after a few days, he breaks up with her due to being pressurised by Radhika about marriage and wanting instead a simple girl as a housewife. Facing depression, she opts for a move to Hong Kong.

In Hong Kong when she gets to know her boss’s boss Neel Gupta who is 20 years older than her , she finds him attractive. On their business trip together, they end up sleeping together by the beach. This continues for one year, but after that Radhika realises that she has no future with him as he is married with children. Thus she breaks up with him and shifts to London office.

After getting tremendous pressure from her mother for an arrange marriage, she finally agreed and connects with Brijesh Gulati in a matrimonial site and also says yes for marriage to make her mother happy.

Both her ex- boyfriends realised they want her back and contacted Radhika but she was very confused between her past and future husband so she turned down both their proposals and even cancelled her wedding with Brijesh because she felt she was not ready for marriage.

“Why do we need our men to praise and validate us in order for us to feel accomplished?”

“You know what women really want? We don’t want to choose. We want to fly and we also want a beautiful nest. We want both. Do male birds tell female birds to choose? “Hey honey, choose. Either fly or sit in the nest.”

https://bookmate.com/books/d41pnvtp/quotes

A society that can breach the stereotype in India .

I never feel confined by gender, by labels, by expectations, by stereotypes. I’m free to be myself.

Princess Nokia

Introduction

During the last two decades it is said that to be a women is the most precious gift a human can have . To be able to give birth to another human being that lives inside precisely 9 months at most .

But their is another dispute that a women can only be a insider . That can fulfill the needs of the dominant society.

Isn’t these two statements are contradictory. In first one a women is a precious gift and in another she can only fullfill one’s needs but only in four walls .

Aren’t they human or a thing that can only live under the roof of men for living ?

Women have always played an important role in the society . Even in the ancient times , they were considered as an equal with the men . So what change , the air , the water , the life style or the mindset . We can also say that the stereotype mindset in society .

Years and years before people grew their ego and think about their individual benefits. Women lead life with virtue , wisdom and respect .

When it start

It was all not same as it was now , their were times when women rule the nation . But due to the foreign invasion , women suffer immensely . At the mediaeval times , women came to be confined within the four walls of the house .

Mediaeval period also known as ‘DARK AGE ‘ as very few women’s were found to be a ruler at that period . It was the period when women brought to the deeds where they made to be inferior to men .

They were raped and brutally killed by the demons who think they can dominate them .

Rani Padmavati, Jodha Bai, Gulbadan Begum, Nurjahan, Jahan Ara , Mumtaj Mahal, Razia Sultan , Jija Bai are some of the women who fought for their right , safety , people , family and love also saved many .

“And one day she discovered that she was fierce, and strong, and full of fire, and that not even she could hold herself back because her passion burned brighter than her fears.”

– Mark Anthony

Modern era

It’s a century of love , reliability , equality and most important individuality .

Then why women are always compared to the men . Why they questioned when they are innocent . ( Well not all are innocent and victim , just for those who are ) .

I do believe that men and women are different . Their differences doesn’t make them weak . It’s just a perspective and view of people that make them vulnerable .

But do women care , it’s their own life not to say that anyone means ANYONE can come and stamp their ‘so called ’ rules on them . Not against the male gender but to those who think they can dominate and lock them in four walls .

Not to say, if women lock men in four wall room . So what will happen to them . Umm. Let’s think , they run like a horse at the time when the room unlocked .

If OJO -MOJO can’t stay in their rooms can’t OLLE do the same . Yes she can , also kick their humpy dumpy bum.

Let’s end the topic and eat some more . It’s a 21st century donot let someone walk on you , you can stand for yourself .

“Don’t let anyone speak for you, and don’t rely on others to fight for you.”

– Michelle Obama

This editorial is written under one’s perspective . Neither against any gender nor in favour .

Book Review: One Indian Girl by Chetan Bhagat

Book Review: One Indian Girl by Chetan Bhagat

One Indian girl written by Chetan Bhagat is a well-known novel written in 2016. The best thing is that Book is written in an easy and understandable language of about 272 pages. Once you start reading and going through the book, you can end in just one to two sitting.

Coming to the review part of the novel:

One Indian girl is a story of an Indian Punjabi girl Radhika Mehta, who deals to balance much with career and her love life. She always ends up with different thoughts and confusion. Radhika is brilliant in her academics but remains unpopular in college and the main reason for this is her dull complexion. She was always been judged throughout her studies.

On the other hand, her elder sister Aditi is beautiful, fair, and popular in her college. This makes Radhika feel always confused with the thought of society in today’s world and she remains confused with the fact that why society prefers good looking than skills.

When I involved in getting myself into the book, I could feel Radhika dealing with problems that every Indian girl in one or the other way needs to go through all these problems.

On one end she works hard and manages to get admission to SRCC also known as Shri Ram College of Commerce and then continues with her higher studies for MBA from IIM Ahmedabad. Later on, she gets placed with the earning of 48 lacs per annum in New York city. This makes her mom in trouble with the thought of how would she find a suitable groom for her. Radhika along with her work manages her love life and is happy with what she achieved regardless of what others wanted her to do. She is confident, ambitious, and hardworking. She knows in no way a man and woman need to be compared that who is earning more.

Radhika starts earning in New York and finds a guy named Debashish who is an advertising agency in New York. Later they turn to be good friends and he asks her for the date. They start living relation and at the same time Radhika’s hard work became no less and she kept on working more. She later broke up with him and they part ways. Later Radhika gets shifted to a new city and gets hired there and found Neel as his boss’s boss who was 20 years older than Radhika, and they both started dating. Later realizing Neel was already married, Radhika leaves him.

The family pressure on the other hand was no less in any way to get Radhika to marry, and in all way, her mother convinces her to get married. This way Radhika continues dealing with problems relates the story of many girls with dreams.

 

What this book felt like:

In my opinion, Chetan Bhagat did a fantastic job covering the journey of an Indian girl and how she deals with all the problems where on one hand girls are allowed to study and on the other hand she is preached not to gain more money than the man. The difference makes the girl uncomfortable to digest with the thought process of man and society and eventually she always ends up being sad and confused.

 

This Novel will be better if you are a beginner in reading and will make you realize what thoughts are built in the situation and how a woman deals with each of them. And mostly Indian women’s who deals with such tough situation where they come up with deep confusions which society decides for her. Radhika in every way is a perfect example representing the troubles of an Indian girl which is beautifully written by Chetan Bhaghat.

Hope it helps!