You have just been selected by the magazine Fast Company as one of the 100 most creative people in business today. Your thoughts?
I am delighted. The two things I value most, influence and creativity, are exactly the things I have been recognised globally for. First the Time magazine list and now this one, I am surprised that they noticed my work while I'm based in India.
Do you like seeing your creativity as a business?
I do think creativity needs to be commercialised somewhat, to make it sustainable. If I could not earn anything from my creativity, I would still be working at the bank, thus curtailing my creative stuff. I feel commercialising creativity is also a creative act by itself, and one has to do it with grace.
How much does this honour mean to you?
It means a lot to me, as I want to promote Indian creativity and innovation. This will help give me credibility for that cause.
How much are you worth in terms of earnings?
Not that much, but I make more than I need or can spend. And while making money is good, I measure my success in terms of my reach, influence and the number of Indians I have touched.
How seriously do you take your image as youth icon?
I think the youth icon term is somewhat an exaggeration. I am not nearly as perfect as a human being or in my work to be called an icon. I don't. In fact, if being a youth icon means behaving yourself, being serious, not having fun and giving moral lectures like telling them not to have sex, then I am a terrible, terrible youth icon.
But if being a youth icon means believing in yourself, people's right to choose, fighting for justice, chasing excellence and making the most out of life, then maybe you have come to the right place.
That said, I think the country lacks enough role models and youngsters need an elder brother of sorts, real enough to have flaws, whom they can emulate when they plan their own career. I also understand my columns have significant reach, so I try to be a little more careful about what I write.
With popular success comes the baggage of glamorous events, right clothes, kisses in the air...do you enjoy the trappings of being a celebrity?
I am learning to enjoy it. Being a writer, and that too from a nerdy background, designer clothes and styled haircuts are alien to me. Yet, I understand that being a slob isn't exactly a career plus. I haven't given any air kisses, as they kind of look really fake. To me the biggest benefit of being a celebrity is that you are heard, while a common person in India is often not.
You share the honour of being one of the 100 most creative people in business with the likes of Jack Dorsey and Sebastian Thrun. What's your opinion on the people in the list?
I think other people in the list have done a lot more than me, in terms of the body of work as well as the quality. I admire Conan O'Brien; I think he is an amazing entertainer. I also like the people from Google and Apple on the list, as they help run some of the most innovative companies on the planet.
In India who are the youngsters you see as potential youth icons?
There's so many. There are people excelling in every field, even if they are not in tabloid stories everyday. It helps to have inspiring figures in your life. Take a Shreya Ghosal, a Saina Nehwal, or say the people who made cleartrip.com. Are they not role models?
Your association with Bollywood has strengthened with each book. Do you enjoy the extra attention that showbiz brings to you by extension?
The attention is helpful in bringing more readers to my books. At the same time, I have to be careful to not let Bollywood's seductive charm take over my life. I will be speaking more about the change that the country needs, whether it is in our politics or in our culture and values. I know my creativity can entertain, but can it change the way people think? That is the quest for me.
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