Making of a bestseller. Review on The Bestseller... She Wrote - Ravi Subramanian

Ravi Subramanian’s new book the bestseller she wrote is about a bestselling writer Aditya. He is in his forties and works in a bank. He has a beautiful wife Maya and a son. One day on one of his lectures he meets Shreya. She is a young, beautiful management student. The initial tiff between the two transforms into a mutual attraction. Aditya inducts Shreya into his bank through campus interview.

Shreya wants to be a writer. Not just a writer, but a bestselling writer like Aditya. Aditya agrees to help her with her book. Shreya asks him to give the first draft of his next novel to her to read, before anyone else reads it. She gives her feedback saying that sex in his novel is insipid. She offers Aditya practical lessons to make the sex in the book more interesting. One thing leads to the other and they are attracted to each other. Sanjay, Aditya’s best friend works in the same bank with him. He warns him about his growing proximities with Shreya. But Aditya is blindfolded by lust. Maya discovers her husband’s extramarital relationship and throws him out of her house. Shreya is too happy to know that. She feels now that Maya has thrown Aditya out of her house, she can marry him. She feels that she will make a better wife than Maya as both she and Aditya love writing. Shreya wants Aditya. But she equally wants her novel to be published as well.

Ravi Subramanian’s the bestseller she wrote, is commercial novel at its best. Aditya’s character is largely based on Chetan Bhagat. Ravi leaves no chance of pulling Chetan’s leg. But the irony is that he ends up borrowing Chetan’s writing style, particularly in those scenes where Aditya admires Shreya’s beauty and they get cozy. The novel is a page turner. It hooks you. You are too eager to know what happens next.

Shreya wants Aditya. But she wants her book too. She can go to any extent to ensure that her book will get published. The same stands true when it comes to Aditya. She doesn’t want to lose him at any cost. When Aditya tells her that he doesn’t want to leave Maya, she simply says that she never asked him to leave her. She just wants to continue their illicit relationship. Shreya comes across as a complex character who is both using and loving Aditya. I personally felt that the Naxalite angle given to Shreya’s life was left raw.

The end also was unrealistic. It is hard to believe that Shreya leaves Aditya only because she doesn’t want to create a scene before her book release. Aditya’s apology during the live screening and in the hospital is too filmy. Yet I enjoyed the bestseller she wrote for its novel concept, its digs at Chetan Bhagat, Shreya’s complex character and her obsession for getting published. The book also depicts the workings of the publication industry. It underlines the worst part about books these days. They are required to be marketed and authors and publishers, just like film stars can go to any extent to sell their books.