Old Wine in a New Bottle

After shamelessly succumbing to Chetan Bhagat's 2 States, there was no way I was going to miss his next novel, Half Girlfriend. The unusual title is credited to the unclear relationship statuses between men and women in India, and where a boy develops a one-sided attraction towards a girl.

The plot revolves around the socially inferior status and linguistic struggles of one Madhav Jha, a rural Bihari boy who enrols himself into the prestigious St. Stephen's College in New Delhi. He enters through the sports quota due to his feeble command of English, and while doing so, falls in love with the rich and beautiful Riya Somani. Having a common passion for sports they quickly form a bond of friendship, but as time passes Madhav views Riya as a prospective love interest. The latter, however, not really interested in a relationship, agrees to be only his "half girlfriend".

This book, like most of Chetan Bhagat's other works is simply and amiably written, with cute little puns and affable jokes smothered in to conceal the otherwise rehashed plotline. Just another "poor guy falls for the rich girl" tale – it is old wine served in a new bottle. The title is somewhat objectifying and the saga seems tailor-made for another Bollywood sob-fest. Well, most love stories do share the same initiation and end up having the same climax, but the plots that happen in between leading to the ultimatum is what's really there to see, isn't it? There isn't anything astonishingly different happening in the intermediate plots, yet the author manages to engage us without trying too hard. Despite the "I've read this story a thousand times before" epiphanies in my head, I still managed to crouch like a little mushball and had my share of chuckles here and there.

Promoting negative stereotypes, it's nothing like you've never read before. But if you are into the young adult and romantic genres, and a self proclaimed hopeless romantic like myself, you might as well like it. I'll probably read it again during the winter; I mean who doesn't like curling up with a happy, sappy light read? I know I do.

Rafidah Rahman is a teeny-tiny Hulk, she's always angry and she's always hungry. A cynical dreamer and a food enthusiast, she's your everyday entertainment. Correspond with her at https://www.facebook.com/rafidah.rahman.39 or rafidah_topaz@hotmail.com