It has been a quiet Dussehra for Chetan Bhagat. If international bestselling writers choose Christmas to come out with their novels—as they made perfect gifts—Bhagat, being a true desi, timed his latest release to October, the festival season. He inevitably had a book launch, usually at the India International Centre (IIC), to make a point to the snobbish intellectual crowd of the Capital. And his loyal readers queued up for an autograph. This year, Bhagat's book, a departure from his usual love story, The Girl in Room 105, arrived in bookstores without any fanfare or fuss.
The writer, who is in the eye of the #MeToo storm—the latest being author Ira Trivedi coming out to accuse him of forcibly kissing her—had recently changed publishers, opting for Westland. His first release with the publishing house, Bhagat had hoped to market the book differently. Gone was IIC, and the plan shifted to launching it in a bookstore. However, most of the promotion was digital. A mini-movie promo, blockbuster style, about the book was shot by Mohit Suri, featuring Vikrant Massey. “A lot of young kids are on Instagram and it is a way to attract them and bring them back to books,’’ he had said in his previous interview to THE WEEK.
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However, since the #MeToo storm, Bhagat has remained uncharacteristically quiet. In Singapore, where his wife works and lives, Bhagat hasn't tweeted since October 17, when he wished his followers “Happy Durga Ashtami”. There have been no interviews of Bhagat and no major reviews of his book, rendering the release almost invisible. In less than a month since the book was released, sales have been rather slow. At Bahari Sons, the capital city's iconic bookstore in Khan Market, the book is in the display window. Yet, the sales figure for the book is much less than usual. “The book isn't selling as fast as his other books,'' said an official. Whether this is because of Bhagat's recent controversy, being named in the #MeToo campaign, or because Bhagat has tried to write a “suspense” book isn't clear. What there is no doubt about, however, is that Bhagat will need a makeover. Personal, and literary.
