Submit your Article

The biggest fashion faux pas you’ve ever committed?

I used to wear loose skirts with leggings. What was I thinking?

The most embarrassing thing you accidentally messaged to someone?

Thank God such a calamity hasn't happened so far. I hope I will be able to say this for the rest of my life.

Two things you would change about yourself?

I have a silent laugh. I would rather have a loud, infectious, funnier-than-the-joke kind of laugh. And yeah, wouldn't mind being taller.

If you had to eat one meal every day, for the rest of your life, what would it be?

‘Daal, bhat, aloo bhuteko, golbheda ko achaar and ghiu.’ This meal can keep me happy for eternity.

Would you rather give up your smartphone or your computer?

Well I don’t know the whereabouts of my laptop actually, so the choice is pretty obvious for me.

What’s the craziest thing you’ve done in the name of love?

I have definitely done a lot of crazy things in my life but none of them were for love. I would love to in the future though.

Texting or talking?

Oh talking for sure. Even while texting, if the message is too long, I start sending voice messages.

If you could eliminate one thing from your daily routine, what would it be?

I definitely need to stop spending so much time on my phone. I got to read and meditate more.

If you could be on a reality TV show, which one would you choose?

None actually. I would rather not be a part of anybody else's reality but mine own. My friends are super-entertaining though, we could have our own reality show. I think we should start looking for a camera crew.

The most inspiring person for you in the Nepali entertainment industry? 

My sister from another mother Malina Joshi. She is actually my sister, friend, mother, boyfriend, everything. She guides me every step of my life. And her independence is so inspiring.

The co-pilots of their self-proclaimed jet called the Nepal Communist Party now don’t even want to talk to each other. At the time of unification of CPN-UML and CPN (Maoist Center) in May 2018, KP Oli and Pushpa Kamal Dahal had promised to together safely land the jet, taking the country a step closer to the institutionalization of the new federal democratic republic. Old enmities would be buried, they told the country, and they would henceforth work to realize the new party’s motto of “Prosperous Nepal, Happy Nepalis”. People had a hard time believing these two ambitious men. 

Their suspicions are being borne out. The unity was not between two communist parties, it is getting increasingly clear, as it was a marriage of convenience for the two co-chairpersons. Leading a party with near absolute control of the federal apparatus, Oli wanted to run his government unopposed for five years. Nor would he have to relinquish party leadership. Dahal, for his part, wanted to lock-in party chairmanship going into the first NCP general convention. He had also been promised government leadership midway through this parliament’s term. Even if he didn’t get to the PM’s chair, the calculation was, he would vastly increase his old over the party. 

Sans any ideological mooring, the two communist parties’ unity was always going to be shaky. Yet while few believed the two leaders would easily set aside personal interests in favor of national interest, they had hoped the NCP government would at least serve out its five-year term—something no post-1990 government had done. Such stability would also bring prosperity. But it turns out there is only a tenuous connection between stability and prosperity. 

As badly as PM Oli has performed, most Nepalis don’t want the ruling party to split. Another unmistakable lesson of the fragile post-1990 polity is that powerful parties are a prerequisite for democratic stability. Had the big parties succeeded in resolving their inner conflicts, the country would not have had to witness decades of instability, violence, and stunted growth. The NCP can still be saved if its top leaders, starting with Oli, ditch their short-term calculations and work for the party’s long-term future. Or is that asking too much of the leaders who were at the vanguard of the movement to usher in recent democratic changes?

If you could travel back in time, what period would you go to?

The good old days of Thamel, around 2007-2010. I was around people who were passionate about music and got a chance to learn a lot from them. I probably lived the best part of my best life doing things I loved the most and playing music with the best.

Do you ever post inspirational quotes on social media?

Not really but making guitar tutorial videos for the followers of Nepali Guitar Tutorial is my everyday inspiration.

What genre would a movie made on your life be? Who would play you?

Haven’t really thought to that extent but it would definitely have to be a musical. Btw, I would suggest the producers drop such ideas and save money for their own good.

Which Nepali celebrity annoys you the most?

None, because I think people are just being themselves even if we don't understand their way or nature. Everybody is trying their best to survive and I don't have any problem with that. 

What advice you got has been the most rewarding?

Honestly, none. So far I've gotten more criticisms than sound advices.

What is better: academic certificates or experience?

I would say experience but the world wants your certificates. 

What is the best gift you have been given?

My two sons are the best gifts I’ve been given. Also, the very first guitar that I owned, which was gifted to me by my friend Sunil Limbu.

Do you wish anything to come back into fashion?

Not very conscious about fashion, so I don’t know how to answer this.

On a scale of 1-10 how funny would you say you are?

I try to be 10 but I think I'm just 4. Maybe because I’m too straight :)

If you had to see yourself as an animal, which one would it be?

I used to be agile like a cheetah but now I’m lazy like a panda. Hopefully, I won’t look like one in the future.

Kathmandu valley could again be locked down in the third week of December as the festive season winds down. The mayors of Kathmandu, Lalitpur and Bhaktapur as well as the chiefs of smaller local-level units in the valley have suggested the same. They fear the covid situation in the valley—with now nearly 100,000 covid-positive cases, and close to 500 deaths—is getting out of hand. Anecdotal evidence suggests unreported cases will easily outweigh the reported ones. Without a more active intervention, the number of positive cases could explode and the valley’s hospitals be overwhelmed.

The local bodies’ leaders have asked the federal government to ramp PCR testing as well as contract-tracing. They also want additional hospital beds for serious patients. We hope the government, everyone from the prime minister down, is listening. The six months of the previous lockdown could have been used to drastically reduce virus-spread had they been coupled with mass testing and more effective contract-tracing. Yet most federal, provincial and local representatives appeared content to do nothing more, as if they expected the pandemic to die down with time. Protests erupted against the draconian measures aimed at curbing freedom of movement, even as the government seemed clueless of the end-goal.

With millions of livelihoods on the line, people are in no mood for another protracted lockdown. The authorities must hence come up with a clear roadmap on mass testing and contract-tracing—and a set timeline. Many started flouting the previous lockdown and other restrictions when they sensed the government’s indifference to their fate. After not working for long, they also got increasingly worried about their livelihood. Heavy-handed police interventions to force people into their homes or to arbitrarily fine the rule-breakers were counterproductive too.

Make no mistake. It won’t be easy to convince Kathmandu folks to again agree to hole themselves up in their homes—for any length of time. The government messaging is important. Can it convince them about its seriousness this time? If not, the government should brace for another revolt, more ferocious this time. The previous lockdown’s lesson was clear enough: you cannot take people for granted. 

If you could have anything, what would you wish for?

Time and money to constantly travel without any limitations.

First celebrity crush?

None. I am a boring person when it comes to crushes and idols.

What is one thing we would never guess about you?

Mood swings.

Dawn or dusk?

Both, big time. I enjoy every bit of these two times of the day. My pictures on FB/Insta are proof.

If you could travel back in time, what period would you go to?

My People’s Campus days.

The most interesting celebrity you’ve interviewed?

I won’t say a celebrity but a personality. He is George Abraham. This was during my Delhi days, when I worked in television production. He is visually impaired since childhood and the man behind blind cricket in India. It was an interesting shoot.

What was the worst style choice you ever made?

I keep making them, there’s no count :)

If you could join any past or current music group, which would you want to join?

The Midnight riders!!!? Hehehe…Ahem!! Ahem!!! To play alongside you!!

What is the last TV show you binge-watched?

‘Grey’s Anatomy’ and ‘Chicago Fire’. But I am not a very TV person, even though I have a career in television.

If you ruled over this country, what would be the first law you would introduce?

The law of having just four working days. But those four days should be intense working days. No lazying around.

It’s not for us to say whether Prime Minister KP Sharma Oli should resign. The party he jointly chairs with Pushpa Kamal Dahal has near two-thirds majority in the federal lower house and Oli was chosen the prime minister as its parliamentary party leader. At least until the next elections or so long as the Nepal Communist Party remains intact, the party has legitimate claim to the top post. And choosing the prime minister is undoubtedly the NCP’s sole prerogative. Yet the media and the people also reserve the right to pass judgment on his government.

The Oli government has been a disappointment. It promised so much, and delivered so little. From the wretched state of the national economy to the abysmal handling of the Covid crisis, its failures are a legion. This is partly why there is disquiet in the ruling party. The shoot-from-the-hip Oli was never going to be universally popular in the NCP. Yet his rival factions would have been silenced if people had expressed their faith in Oli’s leadership. As it is, the intra-party rifts threaten to tear the NCP apart.

PM Oli on Nov 4 accused rival factions in his party of conspiring to unseat him and reaffirmed his commitment not to resign under any condition. Meanwhile, his chief rivals like Dahal and Madhav Kumar Nepal have had enough of Oli’s ‘go-it-alone’ attitude. And these in-party disagreements are once again threatening to boil over. Dahal and Nepal are both canny politicians who will not miss a chance to pull Oli down. Yet they justly accuse the prime minister of mishandling the pandemic, of enriching his cronies, and of ignoring (even mocking) healthy public criticism. Oli has also been reluctant to share power even though his party espouses ‘collective leadership’.

The prime minister has two options. Either he has to accept the charges levelled against him and resign. Or, if he is determined to stay put, he has to mend his errant ways and justify his continued government leadership. At least that is how things work in a healthy democracy. Oli must show through his deeds that he is accountable to the people and the parliament. People elected him to power for more than his oratory skills.