India's #MeToo moment: Chetan Bhagat apologises after screenshots of WhatsApp messages go viral

"In a jungle, a lion's cub, initially fed by his/her mother, eventually has to learn how to hunt. He/she needs to sharpen the claws and learn how to use them. For humans, claws represent the mind," Bhagat said.

According to Bhagat, a sharp mind can do wonders in any situation. And for those with no material wealth in life, education is the stepping stone to sharpen one's mental faculties, and rise above one's station, he shared with the audience.

While he loves surfing the Internet (he has a sizeable social media following), chatting with friends and watching cute puppy videos, his mantra is very clear: ‘Work first, fun later’.

If ol' habits die hard, good habits stay. And that's why the bestseller writer feels that it's essential to inculcate good habits that will see you through life. And if you've ever been lazy or lacked discipline to complete a task, fret not: what matters most is getting back on track.

Bhagat said that as a child he would seek refuge in the local, video game parlours for Re 1 instead of studying. But, somewhere, good sense prevailed and he didn't let that become a (bad) habit.

"Good habits are hard to develop and can seem like a pain, but are worth it," he added.

When Bhagat decided to choose a college, he started preparing for the IITs because it would make him employable and independent. In other words, empowered to look after himself.

And his message to the audience was: Equip yourself to one day not be dependent on anyone - this applies to everyone, but especially to girls, and women.

As more women break barriers and assume non-conventional roles, they are setting new limits for themselves, he said. And this is becoming possible because women are feeling empowered to take on challenges and excel in roles that were previously dominated by men.

Failure, often, pulls one down, and pushes a person to the brink of taking an extreme step. Bhagat revealed that he, too, once wanted to end his life in school because he didn't fare well in Chemistry exams.

"Anxiousness and failure can play mind games with you. But, it is up to you to learn from your experiences and move on," he shared.

In an increasingly cynical world, it's important to hold one's stead, and stay positive.

Wonder why people love reading Bhagat's novels? Well, the author when asked, quipped: 'Because I care for my readers'.

"I have made reading easy, try to keep my stories fun, and my books highlight problems of my readers," he said.

And the engineer-turned-author reiterated that while it is okay to be self-centered when achieving one's goals, one should never forget those who may have helped you in your journey.

Last year, Arjun Kapoor and Shraddha Kapoor came together in 'Half Girlfriend' which was based on Bhagat's novel of the same name. Directed by Mohit Suri, the film had an interesting start at the box office, but later failed to sustain the momentum. The acting of the lead pair was also nothing much to write home about, and it got panned by the critics.

Produced by Sajid Nadiadwala and Karan Johar, '2 States' was based on Bhagat's novel of the same name. The movie starred Arjun Kapoor and Alia Bhatt, who played the author and his wife, respectively, when they were in college. Based on the north-south cultural divide, it was a blockbuster hit thanks to Alia's carefree acting and effervescent charm. Ronit Roy as Kapoor's alcoholic father also made an impression.

After a series of successful movies based on his books, Bhagat was roped in to to write the screenplay of 'Kick' with Sajid Nadiadwala. The movie was an official remake of the Telugu film 'Kick' released in 2009. And true to the Salman genre of movies, it was one of the highest-grossing Hindi films. Jacqueline Fernandez played Khan's love interest in the film.

Based on Chetan Bhagat's 'The 3 Mistakes of My Life', this was a runaway hit. Directed by Abhishek Kapoor, it starred newcomers Sushant Singh Rajput, Rajkummar Rao and Amit Sadh in lead roles. And despite newbies, the movie did substantially well. According to boxoffice.com, the total domestic collections reached Rs 480 million. Set against the backdrop of Gujarat, the film had a right combination of cricket and politics.

Adapted from Chetan Bhagat's 'Five Point Someone', the movie was one of the highest-grossing Indian films to have come out of Bollywood. Starring Aamir Khan, Kareena Kapoor, R Madhavan and Sharman Joshi, it was based on the life of students in IIT. Boman Irani played a quirky professor. Thanks to some parts of the film being shot in Ladakh, the mountainous region became a fixture with subsequent Bollywood films.

Three years on, inspired by the success of '3 Idiots', Shankar directed a Tamil film, 'Nanban', in 2012.

This one was based on Chetan Bhagat's book, 'One Night at the Call Center'. It had a motley star cast including Sohail Khan, Sharman Joshi and Gul Panag. This story of lost love, thwarted ambitions and emotional drama failed to set the cash registers ringing.