Better known as bestselling author Chetan Bhagat's brother, Ketan Bhagat says sailing in the publishing world was not smooth for him even though he was armed with a famous surname.
After getting rejected by some 25 publishers, he was signed by Crossword and his book "Complete/Convenient" has sold over 10,000 copies since its release about two months ago.
Ketan's first book has been trashed by quite a few, but what makes him endearing is not his sense of style and creativity, but his simplicity, more so if contrasted with his elder brother's haughty ways.
"I am not a well-read man. I hardly ever read," says Ketan, who is now making an effort to read celebrated authors Arundhati Roy, Salman Rushdie and Paulo Coelho!
He claims he is creatively different from elder brother Chetan and makes little attempt to oppose the widespread view that his brother is responsible for the dumbing down of Indian literature.
"Chetan discussed 'One night @ the call centre' with the family and I trashed it," Ketan told PTI in a phone interview from Mumbai. The response was much the same when he watched the premiere of "Kai po che", a Bollywood film scripted by Chetan.
"I told Chetan that the film was good, but not great. But I guess whatever I trash does well for him," chuckles the 35-year-old author.
However, he claims there is no sibling rivalry between the brothers. "Chetan was always a topper and I barely managed to pass my class 12 exams. We are different people, but there is no rivalry."
Chetan did little to actively promote his book and the "Bhagat surname" was of little help.
"I got noticed because of the Bhagat in my name. But if the book is selling it is because people liked it. In the end the work speaks for itself. Some people have even suggested that it is a good script for a movie," he says.
