Trend of Movie adaptations from books

More filmmakers are opting for bestsellers rather than conventional movie scripts. Bollywood, over the years, has drawn heavily from literature. Filmmakers are looking at a slew of award winning books that not only have a huge fan base of their own, but also helps build the curiosity factor around a film.

The veteran filmmaker Vishal Bhardwaj is particularly fond of adapting literary works into his movies. His Blue Umbrella was an adaptation of Ruskin Bond's novel by the same title. His movies, Maqbool and Omkara were adapted from Shakespeare's Macbeth and Othello. 

His last, Saat Khoon Maaf was based on Bond's short story, Susanna's Seven Husbands. Directors like Govind Nihlani, Shyam Benegal, Mira Nair, Deepa Mehta and Anurag Kashyap have quite often adapted novels.

Shakespeare has been the biggest muse to Bollywood filmmakers and among the Indian authors, Sarat Chandra Chattopadhyay and Premchand have been the favorites.

More than 15 Chattopadhyay novels have been adapted into films, out of which Devdas and Pareenita remain popular. Bollywood filmmakers PC Barua, Bimal Roy, Sanjay Leela Bhansali and Anurag Kashyap have made film versions of the novella.

Chetan Bhagat seems to be the current favourite of Bollywood. With two of his books already made into films (including 3 Idiots), two more are on the anvil. 

Anurag Kashyap ambitious project Bombay Velvet that he was going to make with Danny Boyle has been in limbo for more than two years. The film is loosely based on Gyan Prakash's 'Mumbai Fables'. He was initially planning to make this with Shah Rukh and Aamir Khan but later the director denied the news.  Karan Johar has landed the movie rights of this debut book – Immortals of Meluha by the bestselling author Amish Tripathi. 

Vishal Bhardwaj is going to adapt a story from the Mumbai-based crime reporter S Hussain Zaidi's (of Black Friday fame) book, Mafia Queens of Mumbai. Mira Nair's next The Reluctant fundamentalist is based on Mohsin Hamid's international bestseller. The film will star Kate Hudson. Her last film Namesake was adapted from JhumpaLahiri's famous novel with the same title.

Movie Adaptations to watch out for in 2012

2012 will see these international films adapted from books: 

"The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo" by David Fincher stars Daniel Craig and Rooney Mara. It hinges on Stieg Larsson's crime novel and releases this week.

The much-anticipated "The Descendants" starring George Clooney is based on Kaui Hart Hemmings' work with the same title. Jonathan Safran Foer's 'Extremely Loud and Incredibly Close with a 9/11 background has Tom Hanks and Sandra Bullock in its big screen adaptation. 

Colin Farrell-Keira Knightley starrer film noir London Boulevard builds on Ken Bruen's gangster novel. Hugo marks Martin Scorsese's debut in 3D. Yann Martel's bestseller Life of Pi has been adapted into a movie by Ang Lee.

So, the trend of movies being made out of books shall continue. Breaking news also demands us to share that Ashwin Sanghi's 'Chanakya Chant' is also going to be made into a movie as rights of it have been bought today by a production house driven by Ashutosh Gowariker. 


But what is your take on this? Do you believe a movie lives upto people's expectations, once they have already read the book?

What are your favorite movie adaptations? Let's hear it from you!

Regards,

Team Librarywala

Top 10 books of 2011

As the year comes to an end, here’s a list of the most read books in 2011 at Librarywala.com. 

1. Revolution 2020

  A story about childhood friends Gopal, Raghav and Aarti who struggle to find success and love in Varanasi. However, it isn't easy to achieve this in an unfair society that rewards the corrupt. As Gopal gives in to the system, and Raghav fights it, who will win? From the bestselling author of Five Point Someone, one night @ the call center, The Three Mistakes of My Life and 2 States, comes another gripping tale from the heartland of India. Are you ready for the revolution? 

2. The Incredible Banker

 "The Incredible Banker", a tale of corporate politics, deceit, relationships, frauds and money laundering releases raises some interesting and some worrying aspects of living life the foreign bank way. A crucial question, to answer which the reader will have to navigate his way through this 300 page blockbuster, is - What does the embedded "Red" in "The Incredible Banker" signify?. Read the book to un ravel the mystery.

3. Cold Steel

An epic corporate battle that sent shockwaves through the political corridors of Europe, strained the world's financial markets, enriched 30 hedge funds, and permanently transformed the global steel industry — is meticulously detailed in Cold Steel, the riveting story of dueling titans of the business world.

4. The Toyota Way

The Toyota Way is the first book for a general audience that explains the management principles and business philosophy behind Toyota's worldwide reputation for quality and reliability.

5. What would you do to save the world?

"What Would You Do to Save the World?" is a delightfully entertaining first novel which reveals the dust behind the diamonds, the tears behind the plastic smiles, and dishes the dirt on what really goes on behind the scenes of a beauty pageant.

6. Happionaire's Cash The Crash

What Shahrukh Khan can teach you about investing? How to detect a crash before it comes. Future Investment Opportunities? Why you never have to be unemployed? Here’s a book on How to benefit from crashes, slowdowns and recessions.

7. Shopaholic & Sister

Sophie Kinsella has conquered the hearts of millions with her New York Times bestselling Shopaholic novels, which feature the irresistible one-woman shopping phenomenon Becky Bloomwood. Read more to know the twist and turns of the story.

8. The Great Mutual Fund Trap

Convinced that your star mutual fund manager will help you beat the market? Eager to hear the latest stock picking advice on CNBC? FORGET ABOUT IT! "The "Great Mutual Fund Trap shows that the average mutual fund consistently underperforms the market, and that strategies for picking "above-average funds -- everything from past performance to expert rankings -- are useless.  This book is the best pick for those interested in the share market. 

9. Interpreter of Maladies 

In the title story, an interpreter guides an American family through India to their ancestors and hears an astonishing confession. Lahiri writes with deft cultural insight reminiscent of Anita Desai and a nuanced depth that recalls Mavis Gallant. She is an important and powerful new voice.”

10. The Google Story

A Pulitzer Prize winner from the Washington Post whose beat includes Google, Vise and co-author Malseed (who worked with him on The Bureau and the Mole) tells the tale of how two doctoral students built the little search engine.

Those who still haven’t read any of these books can RENT them at www.librarywala.com. 

Happy Holidays and Wishing you a great “read – a – thon year 2012”. 

-Team Librarywala.com

Chetan Bhagat's Revolution 2020: Book Review

At last, I finished reading Mr. Chetan Bhagat's Revolution 2020. Being his fan, I have read his last four books with quite interest and passion. There's nothing which can touch Five Point Someone. Reading it, many youth started scripting a book and they are successful writers today but still, no one has been able to write a better story than Five Point Someone. After that, CB's One Night @ The Call Center came in the market and people rejected its climax. His 3rd book- The Three Mistakes Of My Life was quite interesting and he wrote it with wit and knowledge. It was not just a fiction book but it gave a true image how people think about rival religion in small village and how some chaps from village can dream big and make it turn true. Then came his 2 STATES which brought Chetan Bhagat back in form and people started loving him again. 2 STATES was loved by almost every age group audience and CB got a new group of fans. Chetan Bhagat almost became star with 3 Idiots release and 2 STATES success. He released his latest venture- Revolution 2020 on 7th October this year and 5,00,000 copies are already been sold. Congratulations, CB.

Coming to Revolution 2020, CB promoted it as a Love Story rather than a story about Corruption and Ambition. Yes, they are the subheading of the book but still, he focused much on the Love Story while promotion rather than the other two topics. So, let me talk about the Love Story first. Its about Gopal who is in love with his childhood friend- Arti. Arti sees him just as a friend. Like any other girl. :-) Gopal goes to Kota for his IIT preparation as he fails once. In the absence of her best friend Gopal, Arti falls in love with Raghav. Raghav got admitted passed JEE exam the time Gopal failed in it. Gopal started feeling inferiority complex because of Raghav and he became jealous of him. From here, the story takes lots of twist and turn. For that, pick up the book. Coming to the corruption, it is shown quite nicely as Gopal chooses the way to meet his ambition of being very rich. Raghav is shown as ambitious person for bringing Revolution in India. Gopal keeps playing game with him as he always wanted to fail him but he couldn't do it in school days.

Well, I am sad to say that I didn't found Revolution 2020 any special. It is just another book for me. Yes, the CB readers who have only read CB will like it because they haven't seen other talents of India. I have found better story than R2020 in other books. When you attempt Fiction, it should be at the level where the reader starts jumping while reading the book. Five Point Someone had that effect but R2020 lacks. The love story is also boring because you never find anything cool happening except Gopal trying for Arti and Arti ignoring him for Raghav. Yes, the story takes turn after 180 page and this is when you start loving it. Coming to the Corruption part, CB started it quite nicely but he didn't show a way to deal with it or any kind of exposure to what really is happening in real India. Ambition part is the best part of the book where Gopal is shown striving to pass in his JEE tests but fails every time while Raghav does it. Then, Gopal become ambitious for being rich while Raghav becomes ambitious for bringing revolution in the country. 

R2020 is good in parts but talking on the whole, it is not something special which I would recommend everyone to read. I don't know how some people are rating it as the best by Chetan Bhagat but I would still go for his 1st and 4th book. After seeing CB growing in last 2 years, you expect something larger-than-book from his book but it turned out to be just-another-fictional-attempt. I also felt the lack of sense of humour where Chetan Bhagat is the master. The book doesn't make you laugh out loudly like his other books does. Hence, I didn't found any kind of Chetan Bhagat effect in the book. And, the title of the book is shown as the failure which pisses one off at the end. The one who is corrupted still remains rich in the end. The one who tries to bring Revolution is forced to shut up and sit. Is this what you expect from a book which is named "Revolution 2020" and written by India's most successful author. Sorry to all the CB's fans for breaking your heart. I am also one of them and thus I can't talk good about him even when he hasn't done anything good to be spoken about. I will rate this book 3 out of 5. 

Now I am waiting for the 6th book. :-) 

Thanks!
Abhilash Ruhela 
Our Twitter Friend

A List of the 5 Most Popular Books on Librarywala.com and The Views of a Happy Librarywala.

Our online book rental website (http://www.librarywala.com/) has been doing a phenomenal job at making readers happy all over the country. Numbers most definitely are the best way to judge a book's popularity. After pouring over Excel sheets and analysing numbers, we bring to you a definitive list of the most circulated books across genres on the site.

A true storyteller keeps the reader hooked by unravelling the suspense at the very end. True to that, we go backwards and start with the 5th most circulated book on our website leading up to the most popular book. 

5. The Kite Runner- Khaled Hosseini

About the Book:

"Hosseini's stunning debut novel starts as an eloquent Afghan version of the American immigrant experience in the late 20th century, but betrayal and redemption come to the forefront when the narrator, a writer, returns to his ravaged homeland to rescue the son of his childhood friend after the boy's parents are shot during the Taliban takeover in the mid '90s....Add an incisive, perceptive examination of recent Afghan history and its ramifications in both America and the Middle East, and the result is a complete work of literature that succeeds in exploring the culture of a previously obscure nation that has become a pivot point in the global politics of the new millennium."

Rent it here:

http://www.librarywala.com/WEB/BookDetail.aspx?BID=5510

4. 2 States-The Story of My Marriage by Chetan Bhagat

About the Book:

"Love marriages around the world are simple: Boy loves girl. Girl loves boy. They get married. In India, there are a few more steps: Boy loves Girl. Girl loves Boy. Girl's family has to love boy. Boy's family has to love girl. Girl's Family has to love Boy's Family. Boy's family has to love girl's family. Girl and Boy still love each other. They get married. Welcome to 2 States, a story about Krish and Ananya. They are from two different states of India, deeply in love and want to get married. Of course, their parents don t agree. To convert their love story into a love marriage, the couple have a tough battle in front of them. For it is easy to fight and rebel, but it is much harder to convince. Will they make it?"

Rent it here:

http://www.librarywala.com/WEB/BookDetail.aspx?BID=8716

3. A Thousand Splendid Suns-Khaled Hosseini

About the book:
"The story covers three decades of anti-Soviet jihad, civil war and Taliban tyranny through the lives of two women. Mariam is the scorned illegitimate daughter of a wealthy businessman, forced at age 15 into marrying the 40-year-old Rasheed, who grows increasingly brutal as she fails to produce a child. Eighteen years later, Rasheed takes another wife, 14-year-old Laila, a smart and spirited girl whose only other options, after her parents are killed by rocket fire, are prostitution or starvation. Against a backdrop of unending war, Mariam and Laila become allies in an asymmetrical battle with Rasheed, whose violent misogyny is endorsed by custom and law. His tale is a powerful, harrowing depiction of Afghanistan, but also a lyrical evocation of the lives and enduring hopes of its resilient characters."


Rent it here:
http://www.librarywala.com/WEB/BookDetail.aspx?BID=5424


2. The Lost Symbol- Dan Brown

About the Book:
"The Lost Symbol once again features Dan Brown’s unforgettable protagonist, Robert Langdon. The book’s narrative takes place in a twelve-hour period, and from the first page, readers will feel the thrill of discovery as they follow Langdon through a masterful and unexpected landscape. Dan Brown’s prodigious talent for storytelling, infused with history, codes and intrigue, is on full display in this riveting novel."


Rent it here:
http://www.librarywala.com/WEB/BookDetail.aspx?BID=8502

The number one book won by a huge margin. It is a book loved by many Indians and undoubtedly one of the most popular authors in recent times, Chetan Bhagat.

To the sound of resounding applause, let's usher in the most popular book on Librarywala.com! 

About the book:

"In late-2000, a young boy in Ahmedabad called Govind dreamt of having a business. To accomodate his friends Ish and Omi's passion, they open a cricket shop. Govind's wants to make money and thinks big. Ish is all about nurturing Ali, the batsman with a rare gift. Omi knows his limited capabiltiies and just wants to be with his friends. However, nothing comes easy in a turbulent city. To realize their goals, they will have to face it all - religious politics, earthquakes, riots, unacceptable love and above all, their own mistakes. Will they make it? Can an individual's dreams overcome the nightmares offered by real life? Can we succeed despite a few mistakes? Based on real events, from the bestselling author of "Five Point Someone" and "One Night @ the call centre", comes another dark, witty tale about modern India."

Rent it here:

http://www.librarywala.com/WEB/BookDetail.aspx?BID=6993

On a different note, while we don't rest on our laurels, we definitely appreciate the voices of our loyal customers. Subhash Macha has been a satisfied customer at Librarywala.com for more than 2 and a half years now. He is an avid reader of both English and multi lingual books. His reading appetite gets full at Librarywala.com. Press PLAY to see what the happy Librarywala user had to say about our service: 

Thank you, Mr.Macha. 


Till next time,
Happy reading, Librarywalas.