Shakil Shrestha
Katniss, The Hunger Games
Let’s begin with a necessary disclaimer: It is not because of Jenifer Lawrence, even though it does give me more reasons to like this character.
I had finished the Hunger Games series before watching the movies. I think it was bit of an instant crush. The moment Suzanne Collins introduced Katniss, her protagonist walking through the forests, armed with a bow and arrows, ready for a hunt, I felt something stir in me. For some reason, it is still unconventional to have such self sufficient, determined female leads who are at par with their male counterparts. However, I have always liked adventurous characters and I especially like Katniss for her zeal.
As many may know, The Hunger Games is a brutal competition where people are expected to fight to their deaths. Katniss volunteers to participate in order to save her younger sister. What begins as an act of self sacrifice eventually gives her a lot of success. Even though she is reluctant to play the game, she does brilliantly. In fact, she even goes on to lead a revolution to over throw the tyranny. How can you not admire such an inspired character?
Katniss is such a fresh breath of air from the shrinking violets and the troubled teenage girls with various complexes. I think Collins has built a character that not only girls can feel empowered by but guys can set standards to as well.
Noor Rajbhandari
Chenault, The Rum Dairy
Study finds more racial diversity in LGBTQ film characters
I’ll go out on a limb and say that everyone has heard of Hunter S Thompson. He created and lived Gonzo journalistic lifestyle and is also the renowned author of Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas as well as Hell’s Angels. Despite that though, it is still quite tricky to find most of HST’s book in our bookstores. Luckily one day while browsing I stumbled on to The Rum Diary. This is an early semi autobiographical novel that he wrote in the 1950’s.
The story tells a tale of one Paul Kemp, a disillusioned journalist in his early thirties, who has moved to San Juan, Puerto Rico, amidst brewing violence spurred on by the Communist revolution in Cuba and the island’s own Independence movement to work in a local newspaper. The atmosphere is perpetually booze-soaked, frequently desperate and, in the end, utterly brutal.
Before we get to that end though, there is love out there for Kemp, in the shape of the beautiful but rather sketchily characterized wild child, Chenault. I liked Chenault. She looks like this archetype of a leading lady, this 1950s housewife-in-the-making. She could very well be a kind of iconic symbol for a woman of that time.
However she is mostly taken as this commodity or a representative of the elite status. On the surface, she is enviably put together, yet, underneath the story is quite different. I liked these juxtaposition in her character. She may look like the epitome of the American Dream but she’s flawed and kind of vulnerable besides being fiercely independent and rebellious at the same time.
Urusha Shukla
Harry Potter, The Harry Potter series
My generation grew up with JK Rowling’s classic so I bet many others too would mention one of her characters when talking about fictional crushes. I remember being absolutely immersed in that magical world for the year it took me to go through the franchise. Rowling’s work made such an impact that I guess it is only natural to nurse a soft spot for Harry.
When I started with the book, I didn’t have any biases towards any character but as the story progressed that changed. There obviously were many other interesting personalities in the books but I just find something very endearing about Harry. He may not be the wittiest or the cleverest of the lot or have much game with the girls but the character with which he tackled the challenges was very admirable to say the least.
When you have a crush on a fictional character, I think you become more invested in the story. You tend to feel the emotions more intensely and become engaged in the character’s journey at a whole new level. For instance, the time when Sirius died, I was genuinely shocked and stung by the injustice of it all. I was so sad. Now I have always tried to keep my enthusiasm for the book and affection for Harry mostly to myself but I got constantly teased as “Harry” by my classmates, so I am guessing I wasn’t successful at all.
Medhina Khanal
Landon Carter, A Walk to Remember
Say all you want about sappy romantic novels but they know how to build their male protagonist and how to tug at your heart strings. Nicholas Sparks has long been a guilty pleasure and Landon Carter, in my opinion, takes the cake as the most crushable male lead.
First of all, this story reinforces my belief that love can change a person for the better. I refuse to be a cynic on this matter. A good relationship can do wonders to a person. I have seen this around me and it’s sort of the basis of this classic love story as well. Landon, who used to be a bully, changes his ways as he discovers Jamie, the female protagonist.
Then, simply put, it’s just the way he treats her. Just in case there are some guys out there who are keen to figure out the right ways to treat their better half, I’d highly recommend this book. Landon sets the bar high with his thoughtful, sometimes funny but always romantic gestures. Most importantly though, I believe where relationships are concerned, there needs to be mutual respect between the couple and this story sets good precedence. Landon is the sort of guy every girl wants.
