Vibhor Kumar Singh explores the key to unlocking happiness in his debut book ‘The Billionaire and the Monk’

Ever since its release, Vibhor Kumar Singh debut book ‘The Billionaire and the Monk’ has been creating a lot of buzz among the readers worldwide. The book has already been translated into several global languages viz. Greek, Italian, German, French, Spanish, Korean, and Portuguese and translations in various other languages are underway. The book explores ways to finding happiness in daily life. Is happiness only meant for a select few? Or is it something that’s attainable for everyone?

Set against the pristine beauty of the Tibetan highlands, the book meditates upon varied themes such as minimalism, money management, discipline, relationship and happiness through health. Vibhor Kumar Singh, who is an alumnus of London School of Economics, Shri Ram College of Commerce and Sherwood College, uses an interesting narrative style wherein the Billionaire and the Monk endeavor to learn from each other as they try and unravel the key to unlocking happiness. Singh basically takes two characters, drastically different from each other, and brings them together for a meeting of the minds to contemplate what it means to be happy. The Billionaire has money while the Monk has the knowledge. And yet both know that struggle to answer the simplest question, “Are You Happy?”

Vibhor Kumar Singh grew up in the hill town of Nainital in the Indian Himalayas. He loves chai, history and Bollywood films. He lives with his two children, wife and mother. He is an entrepreneur and podcaster. In ‘The Billionaire and the Monk,’ Singh puts his entrepreneurial experience to bring out the practical and doable aspects of daily life that are pivotal to attaining happiness in life. “We all love to complicate our lives. Probably, it gives us a sense of achievement trying to clean up our own clutter. I think it is time for people to realise that happiness is not a celebration. It is possible to be happy every day, every moment, and you don't need a vacation to be happy. You simply need to be happy. That's it. Don't fall for the marketing of happiness. Happiness is very simple,” asserts Singh whose podcast, ‘Catching Happiness with Vibhor,’ is dedicated to exploring happiness.

‘The Billionaire and the Monk’ is written in a lucid and straightforward language. Its biggest triumph is that the story brings forward extraordinary wisdom through the most common knowledge. The book is published in India by Pan Macmillan and by Balance, an imprint of Hachette Book Group, in the USA and Canada. “This is my first book, and it has been accepted by a global audience. Mental health is an issue profoundly affecting our society. Happiness, which is a fundamental right, is becoming a rare commodity. I intend to continue writing about finding happiness,” sums up Singh.