Title: You Are a Zero
Author: Rohit Sai Chetla
Publisher: Leadstart publishing
Genre: Contemporary Romance, Young Adult
First Publication: 2021
Language: English
Book Summary: You Are a Zero by Rohit Sai Chetla
Arjun had everything a teenager could dream of – good lifestyle, supportive parents, great friends, the love of his life – Harshu, and the ambition to be successful one day.
A tragedy befell, throwing him into pain and misery. He found himself at a crossroad, disillusioned by the education system, without his love by his side, questioning the meaning of life itself. And thus began his descent into chaos, drugs, and alcohol.
Will Arjun survive and come out of this turmoil? and Will life lend him a helping hand? Will he be able to cope with the realities of the world?
Book Review: You Are a Zero by Rohit Sai Chetla
Everyone doesn’t cope with situations the same way, and problems that may seem minimalistic to you, can send the next person into depression. We all have our own ways of working through our issues, and some have a much harder time than others. You Are a Zero by Rohit Sai Chetla is a coming-of-age story. But it is also so much more than that. It is a story about a boy named Arjun, a teen with high hopes and happy life.
Arjun is a sensitive, selfless, kind, loving, observant, and an intelligent human being with an unbreakable soul! He had all the things a teenager could desire – a healthy lifestyle, parents who supported him, friends he loved, the love of his life – Harshu, and the ambition to succeed one day.
His life was shattered by tragedy, throwing him into a state of pain and misery. Having become disillusioned by the education system and separated from his love by his side, he was left wondering what life is all about. Ultimately, he resorted to alcohol, drugs, and headed into chaos. Personally I thought it was amazingly done and very realistic. There weren’t any embellishments or glorifications, it was true portrayal of teen problems. We go through the story with Arjun while his life goes upside down. The story contains a lot of emotions; Intense and raw emotions. Reading his story makes us realize that our actions, however small, can have a whirlwind of an effect on others.
Even with a good lifestyle, loving parents and friends, however, Arjun’s story is not an easy one to read, and my emotions ran wildly from sadness to hilarity to terrible anger at what happens to him. And just when you think life can’t possibly get any harder or more challenging, sometimes it does. Arjun was an absolutely amazing protagonist. Rohit Chetla carves his character with the utmost precision, creating a sympathetic and strong teen who readers cannot help but cheer for. He did an incredible job bringing Arjun to life by creating a universal character with whom so many can resonate, and on varying levels. He has his whiny moments, like every teen, but the ordeals he’s forced to overcome grant him a giant heart, too.
The writing is perfect for the story–simple yet lovely, with not an extra word or chapter to mar it. The author describes a whole host of secondary characters and they are painted with their own flaws and positive attributes in a very realistic way. While, in essence, the novel is about “growing-up” and “coming-of-age”, I think it’s also about learning to be yourself and being honest. The fact that ‘You Are a Zero’ centres around teen issues, depression and mental health too, I think is tremendously important, and that is why I think more people should read it.
