Chetan Bhagat captivates his fans at Sharjah International Book Fair

Raghib Hassan, Staff Reporter

One of the most celebrated and loved Indian authors, Chetan Bhagat, captivated his fans on Sunday evening, at the 43rd edition of the Sharjah International Book Fair (SIBF). The Conference Room of SIBF was flooded with his admirers. Lots of young fans had to accommodate themselves by sitting on the floor to listen to the author. Known for his witty remarks and candid talk, Chetan enthralled the audience in his imitable style.
He spoke about his latest self-help book, and why he felt a need to come up with this book. He also highlighted the importance of reading books in life and encouraged his young audiences to live in an actual world.

Known for writing bestsellers like “Half Girlfriend,” “2 States,” “The 3 Mistakes of my Life,” “One Night @ the Call Center” and “Five Point Someone,” when asked why he shifted his gears to self-help genre, he said, “I wrote love stories and they all became bestsellers. I have done more than 1,000 corporate events as motivational speaker and I became a motivational speaker accidentally. During the Covid-19 pandemic I also started my YouTube channel on motivation which also became very popular. So I started thinking how can I make a difference in others’ lives and that’s how the idea of my book “11 Rules of Life” came to my mind.”

“If you visit any bookstore you will find half of the shelves are occupied with self-help books but all by Western authors. So, I felt we need a book which should be easy to read and should have an Indian context. I am a storyteller, so I should make it an easy read for my audience.”
Recalling his past, he said, “I came to SIBF for the first time in 2011 and I spoke about my achievements only, I bragged about myself. But this year I have turned 50. Now I feel a change in me. I changed as a person with time. Now I feel how

can I help others?”

Talking about the art of Networking, he said, “Networking is a very powerful tool if you want to progress in life. It is one of the most important things in life and we should start Networking from an early age. You need Networking to grow in life. Whichever stream you choose you need to have a strong Network to go ahead.
“Never be afraid of interacting with people. Be curious to know them and believe in a real world connection,” he added. Highlighting the importance of reading a book, he said, “Reading books help you to focus. It helps you in your imagination. It increases your knowledge. Books are the basic things for us. You don’t need to read a lot, you just read 10 pages a day and at the end of the year you will have 10 books finished.”

“Life is competitive and it is natural. But happiness and sense of achievement comes from within. If look outside for this then it won’t work. You just try to be better than your past.”