Photograph: Rajesh Thakur/ Outlook Group

CHETAN BHAGAT, author of Five Point Someone and One Night @ The Call Centre recently addressed students during an orientation programme for a new batch of MBA students at Symbiosis, Pune.

Read the full speech here:  "I come from the land of a million bright sparks"

Chetan talks to Urmila Rao of Careers360 about his writing, career and life at IIT.

Q: What has been the most endearing moment of your school life?
A: My first crush in Class V when I first discovered romance. Now I make a living out of it!

Q: What were your career plans in college?
A: I wanted to go to college just to make my parents happy. There was no professional ambition as such. I have become a full-time writer only now. It took a long time to figure out what I wanted to do. There are still some parts that I have not figured out.

Q: Which teacher or professor do you remember the most and why?
A: Of the many, I remember Professor Veera of IIT Delhi. He encouraged innovation and creativity; he encouraged my ideas and asked me not to worry about my grades.

Q: What was your first salary?
A: It was Rs 1,500 that I earned working at the Cadbury’s factory at Lonavala as  part of my IIT internship in 1994. 
 
Q: How did you spend it?
A: Definitely not on chocolates as they were free! I spent some on my girlfriend, some on calling my parents back home and I also upgraded my travelling from train to plane. For the first time, I flew from Pune to Delhi to meet my parents.
 
Q: Is being a writer tough?
A: When I wrote my first book and started looking out for a publisher, I knocked nine doors to rejection. By the tenth, I was exasperated and decided it would be my last. I was ready to give up. But lady luck finally smiled. Today, there are nine publishers eager to take me on board. But I have decided to stick to my first publisher.

Q: How do you deal with setbacks?
A: It is said that success is dedicated to God so by the same token, setbacks and failures are also dedicated to God, so don’t take it personally. Have a sense of humour and don’t link it to life so seriously. Learn from it and get better.

Q: Should one take up a profession of passion or profession which pays?
A: In India, it is dangerous to take up a profession of passion. Take up a profession that pays and grow your passion. 
 
Q: What have been the most fascinating and despairing moments of your professional life?
A: Struggling to get my first book published was the most despairing moment. Today my latest book has four lakh copies booked in advance.
 
Q: Should one live for fun or live with a purpose?
A: Purpose can be fun also. Fun should also have a purpose. It is interlinked.
 
Q: Tell us something about your latest book.
A: It’s about modern inter-community marriage. The book is based on my personal life. I am a Punjabi married to a Tamilian girl. It’s a comedy with
the message that India has to become one. I hope that my book will let the community prejudices go away a little faster. 
 
Q: Which book did you read last?
A: Eat, Pray and Love.