I am in love with Hugh Laurie (no sexual feelings). There might have been no book without him at all. For though Hari is the focal character who drives the book and represents my own anger, disenchantment and confusion during my MBA days, Bastard is the one character who made me enjoy writing the book.
(For a background to this conversation, please read this http://www.vaibhavanand.com/2010/09/about-bastard.html)
Somehow writing the book was always a chore. Meenakshi was the worst- the most confusing character- whose tricks & dances frustrated me no end. I remember saying this to MG once- “Saalee ko maar hee dete hain.” She was bitching with the plot like hell.
Bastard was the one character I could completely relate to. While writing him, I always had that arrogant, self satisfied face of Hugh Laurie’s Dr. House in my head. Every scene, every dialogue, every sentence with Bastard in it scores (to me)- his bike entry, his vodka flask, his arrogant self satisfied awareness of the fact that he is two notches ahead of everyone in intelligence, his punch(es), his legend(s)… Hari is an everyman- a confused MBA that everyone today tends to be. Bastard transcends.
I had read Sherlock Holmes in entirety much before I saw House (Sherlock Holmes inspired the character of Dr. House). But Laurie was the reason Bastard came to exist and ultimately livened up the book. That cocky smile; those wicked twisted means… God I am so in love!
And if you ever thought Laurie was just a one dimensional actor, sample this- he has a wicked sense of humor in real life, he is a novelist and also a pianist. Below is a video of one of his hilarious performances.
