Durjoy Datta

Durjoy Datta is an Indian novelist, screenwriter and entrepreneur. He has four shows, Sadda Haq - My Life, My Choice, Million Dollar Girl - From Banaras to Paris on Channel V India, Kuch Rang Pyar Ke Aise Bhi on Sony TV and Ek Veer Ki Ardaas...Veera on Star Plus to his credit.^[1]

He served at NIIT Ltd. Siemens AG, and American Express until he co-founded the publishing house Grapevine India in September 2011.^[2] In 2009, he was recognized as the young achiever by The Times of India. He was also chosen as one of the two young achievers in the field of Media and Communications by Whistling Woods International in 2011.^[3] His debut show Sadda Haq - My Life, My Choice won the Youth Show - fiction category at Zee Gold Awards in 2014 and at Indian Telly Awards in 2014 and 2015.^[4][5]

In 2012, he was one of the recipients of the Teacher's Achievement Awards.^[6] He has also spoken in various TEDx conferences in colleges across India.

Personal life

Durjoy Datta was born on 7 February 1987 in Mehsana, Gujarat but grew up in New Delhi. He completed his schooling at the Bal Bharati Public School, Pitampura and went on to do mechanical engineering from the Delhi College of Engineering now known as Delhi Technological University.^[7] He did his post graduation from Management Development Institute, Gurgaon and also from Frankfurt School of Finance & Management, Germany and majored in marketing and finance.^[8] He started writing while he was still in final year of his college. In 2011, he quit his job at American Express as a marketing analyst and turned a full-time writer.^[2]

He got married to his long-term girlfriend Avantika Mohan on 1 March 2016 in her hometown Dehradun. She lives in Dubai and is an air-hostess by profession. She was crowned as Miss Uttrakhand-2003.

Career

Durjoy Datta's first novel, Of Course I Love You! (co-authored with Maanvi Ahuja) was released in 2008 while he was still in college.^[9] In August 2009, his second novel, the sequel to the first book, Now That You're Rich!, was released.^[10] In the summer of 2010, his third novel, She Broke Up, I Didn't!, released.^[11] His fourth novel was written while he was in Europe for four months in the winter of 2010. The book was named Ohh Yes, I Am Single!, borrowed heavily from Durjoy's life and was written jointly by Neeti Rustagi and Durjoy Datta.^[12] After graduating from from MDI, Gurgaon, in 2011, he co-founded Grapevine India Publishers.^[13] His fifth novel, You Were My Crush!, was published by Grapevine India Publishers in September 2011. It peaked at No. 3 on the Hindustan Times Bestseller list. If It's Not Forever!, his sixth novel, was released on 1 February 2012 and was inspired from the September 2011 blasts in Delhi high court.^[14] The book opened at the No. 6 spot at the Hindustan Times^[15] In the same year, Till the Last Breath..., hit the book stands; the novel was about two young people, a girl suffering from ALS, and guy whose systems are shutting down after years of drug abuse; the novel charts the last few months of their lives. it opened at No.3 on the Hindustan Times Bestseller list. The English Teacher, a short story written by him was released in August 2012 which outlines the dangerous obsession of a young, brilliant student with his English teacher.^[16] On 4 February 2013, Someone Like You, a novel he co-wrote with Nikita Singh, was released by Penguin India.^[17] It debuted at No. 5 at Hindustan Times Bestseller list. It was Durjoy's first book written from a female character's perspective. His ninth novel Hold My Hand released on 5 August 2013. The book was commissioned by Hong Kong Tourism Board. His tenth novel When Only Love Remains released on 19 June 2014. When Only Love Remains is another love story from Durjoy Datta, this one set in the troubled world of an aspiring young singer Devvrat and revolving around a young woman Avanti who has been obsessed with him for a long time.^[18] His eleventh novel World's ̷Best Boyfriend released on 24 April 2015. Dhruv and Aranya spend a good part of their lives trying to figure out why they want to destroy each other, why they hurt each other so deeply, and why they can’t stay away from each other. The answer is just as difficult each time...yet there is something that tells them: This is not it.^[19] His twelfth novel is Our Impossible Love released in January 2016. He has co-authored his books with Maanvi Ahuja, Neeti Rustagi, Orvana Ghai and Nikita Singh. He is one among the best selling writers in contemporary India. He is a regular at TEDx talks^[20] and conferences in colleges pan-India and often invited as a guest speaker across the country. He has also written for blogs like Miss Malini and That's So Gloss.

Works

Novels

• Of Course I Love You..!...Till I Find Someone Better (co-author Maanvi Ahuja) (2008)
• Now That You're Rich! Lets Fall in Love! (co-author Maanvi Ahuja) (2009)
• SHE BROKE UP I DIDN'T!...I Just Kissed Someone Else! (2010)
• Ohh Yes, I'm Single..! And So is My Girlfriend! (co-author Neeti Rustagi) (2010)
• The Backbenchers series (contributor) (first book of the series was published in 2011)
• You Were My Crush!...till you said you love me! (co-author Orvana Ghai) (2011)
• If It's Not Forever...It's Not Love (co-author Nikita Singh) (2012)
• Till The Last Breath... (2012)
• Someone Like You (co-author Nikita Singh) (2013)
• Hold My Hand (2013)
• When Only Love Remains (2014)
• World's w̷o̷r̷s̷t̷ Best Boyfriend (2015)
• Our Impossible Love (2016)
• The Girl of my Dreams (2016)

Short stories

• The English Teacher (2012)
• Shades of Love (contributor) (2012)

Television shows

• Ek Veer Ki Ardaas...Veera (co-writer Sumrit Shahi) (2012 - 2015)
• Sadda Haq - My Life, My Choice (co-writer Sumrit Shahi) (2013 - 2016)
• Million Dollar Girl - From Banaras to Paris (co-writer Sumrit Shahi) (2014 - 2015)
• Kuch Rang Pyar Ke Aise Bhi [Screenplay writer (co-writer Raghuvir Shekhawat)] (2016–present)

References

External links

• Grapevine India Publishers
• Work Summary
• Listed as one Top 10 Indian Authors