‘Meri Naukri, Meri Chokri [My job, my girl]’. Young India’s rallying cry is simple. They want love, they want money and they want stature in society, says popular mass fiction writer and media columnist Chetan Bhagat.
‘They want a good life and a great girlfriend. If your cause will help them get a good life, then they are with you. That is what young India wants. The social causes must be linked to this ambition,’ Bhagat said at the launch of What India Wants at India International Centre on Monday.
Bhagat has has put together his newspaper articles on the changing India into a volume of non-fiction, What Young India Wants: Selected Essays and Columns. The chapters look at an assortment of issues in society, politics, economy and the youth. Two short stories at the end of the book are the fictional elements making for an interesting mix of facts and fiction.
Bhagat has strong views about the country’s economy. He pleads that ‘if India is an agricultural country, shouldn’t we have carried out some massive infrastructure projects across the country’.
Bhagat substantiates his claim with an example. ‘Over two-thirds of our agricultural land is dependent on rain. In contrast, only one-third of China’s land is not irrigated. Developed countries depend very little on rain... Let’s face it, the Indian farmer is not cared for,’ Bhagat said.
The writer, who was an investment banker earlier, said: ‘The approximately 6-8 percent growth in GDP does not talk much about the country’s economic progress’.
‘New job creation has dropped significantly. We have reached a point again where new graduates who are out of college cannot get jobs. Inflation is the result of poorly-managed economy,’ Bhagat said.
The writer observed that ‘India has a warped sense of diversity’. Too many people are making decisions and therefore “there can’t be any consensus,’ he said. ‘The government’s own allies won’t let important decisions being taken.’
Bhagat, who now lives in Mumbai, is also deeply involved with mainstream cinema with two of his new books being adapted into Bollywood movies.
‘They want a good life and a great girlfriend. If your cause will help them get a good life, then they are with you. That is what young India wants. The social causes must be linked to this ambition,’ Bhagat said at the launch of What India Wants at India International Centre on Monday.
Bhagat has has put together his newspaper articles on the changing India into a volume of non-fiction, What Young India Wants: Selected Essays and Columns. The chapters look at an assortment of issues in society, politics, economy and the youth. Two short stories at the end of the book are the fictional elements making for an interesting mix of facts and fiction.
Bhagat has strong views about the country’s economy. He pleads that ‘if India is an agricultural country, shouldn’t we have carried out some massive infrastructure projects across the country’.
Bhagat substantiates his claim with an example. ‘Over two-thirds of our agricultural land is dependent on rain. In contrast, only one-third of China’s land is not irrigated. Developed countries depend very little on rain... Let’s face it, the Indian farmer is not cared for,’ Bhagat said.
The writer, who was an investment banker earlier, said: ‘The approximately 6-8 percent growth in GDP does not talk much about the country’s economic progress’.
‘New job creation has dropped significantly. We have reached a point again where new graduates who are out of college cannot get jobs. Inflation is the result of poorly-managed economy,’ Bhagat said.
The writer observed that ‘India has a warped sense of diversity’. Too many people are making decisions and therefore “there can’t be any consensus,’ he said. ‘The government’s own allies won’t let important decisions being taken.’
Bhagat, who now lives in Mumbai, is also deeply involved with mainstream cinema with two of his new books being adapted into Bollywood movies.