Mohar Basu (MID-DAY; September 22, 2017)

Unarguably, the Indian writer with the most cinematic adaptations of his books, Chetan Bhagat had heaped praise on filmmaker Mohit Suri while the latter was filming his novel, Half Girlfriend, for the big screen. However, in an unusual turn of events, Bhagat now terms the 2017 adaptation, “okay”, saying that the Arjun Kapoor and Shraddha Kapoor-starrer was “too filmi”. “I know everyone did the best they could [to adapt the movie]. But, it was too filmi in parts and could have certainly turned out better. With Arjun cast as the leading man, the expectations were high,” he said ahead of the film’s television premiere on & Pictures.

With Kapoor having essayed the role of Bhagat’s protagonist in the writer’s previous adaptation — 2 States — it was only fitting that he be considered for the recreation of Bhagat’s 2011 novel, Revolution 2020. The long-in-the-planning project, Bhagat tells us, fell apart after controversies plagued production house UTV. With Disney acquiring the firm, there was a temporary limbo. But now, the rights of the cinematic adaptation solely belong to Bhagat.

“Several producers and studios have expressed their desire to make the film,” he said, adding that there is a possibility that Kapoor will no longer play the leading man. “The cast will change. You can expect an announcement by the end of the year,” said the writer, adding that he will work on a screenplay for One Indian Girl if he finds the right producers.

Until then, he is busy writing his next novel, Soulmates.