Review: The 3 mistakes of my life

While describing ' 3 mistakes... ' on his website Bhagat states ' A book that has : BUSINESS, RELIGION , CRICKET
Well you can hardly ask for a better winning combination for a book that is tailor-made for Indians.
In this semi-autobiographical book Bhagat uses his trademark style to present a narration that is as close to realism as its presentation is to melodramatic cinema.
The plot:
Based in the 'not-so-hip' part of Ahmedabad , Bhagat depicts a story of an individual's(Govind Patel) struggle as an entrepreneur while he tries(unsuccessfully,though) to stay away from any distractions-in the form of love and channelizes his friends' (Omi and Ishan) passions to make profit. The book does justice to all the 3 aspects that it says form its main theme . While Govind is a practical businessman with a strong sense of entrepreneurship, Ish is a cricket enthusiast to the core and Omi, a son of a priest is a person who's decisions are influenced to quite an extent by religious aspects. Bhagat has thrown in the Gujarat earthquake and the Godhra riots to bring it closer to the public's heart. As usual he aces in his depiction of the female protagonist(Vidya) who is a typical small-town girl wanting to 'escape from the cage'. The story is about how Govind makes 3 'mistakes' that cost him a lot more than he can afford to lose.
Where Bhagat scores and earns:

• He once again scores 10 on 10 as far as characterization is concerned. You can identify with each of his characters .
  
• Although it is not the central theme of this book as against FPS , he handle the intricacies of love and friendship really well. If there is one author who can bring out the 'sweet nothings' of love in an Indian scenario with all its sensitivity and the nostalgia of being in love, its gotta be Bhagat .
• His description of Gujarat in general and the people there in particular is impeccable.
  
• Although its not as humorous as the earlier novels-at least its no comparison to FPS(or maybe the novelty has worn off) it is still a gripping tale which coupled with his amazing knack of striking a chord with the narration style, is hard to put down.
• He's cashed on the fact that entrepreneurship is the new buzz word. But has he created the passion that the word evokes? I didn't feel it stirring me.
• Bhagat has always written about topics that are close to the Indian heart, the guy understands Indians' sensibilities very well and that perhaps is his biggest forte.
  

Where Bhagat misses and loses:

• Perhaps the biggest flaw is it's climax. Almost as if the editor thought he'd stressed on one overtly flimsy part too much to include the rest of the important stuff. Maybe he could have said something more about Govind the entrepreneur or Ish the cri-crazy enthusiast. But he chose an end that would rather suit a film's climax.
  
• Some parts of the book are needless as they don't add much to the plot. The Bondi beach chapter seemed to be leading us nowhere, for example.
• There are parts in the novel where he goes overboard with the melodrama. He chooses completely wrong moments for it as well. Consider this attempt at 'preaching' a message of persistence.
  A guy is lying on the hospital bed after taking sleeping pills to commit suicide. His mom says "Life will have its setbacks. People will hurt you. But you don't hurt them back. This something that the whole country needs to learn" ...one patriotic mom i say.
  

• Although the plot builds up well, it isn't as gripping as FPS or 1N@CC.

All in all, a good novel to pass your time with(But not good enough to read it a day before your vivas and get flunked the next day,as I unfortunately discovered). Bhagat fans most certainly won't be dissapointed. Whether he gains new one's or not, I'm sceptical about it. But hey it's just me.