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I love breakfast. The idea of it makes me happy. A Pinterest-worthy elaborate spread of toast, muffins, eggs, sausages, bacon, pan-fried potatoes, tea (for my husband), and coffee (for me) is what I aspire for on the rare occasions when our schedules allow us to indulge in a breakfast or brunch session. I don’t enjoy cooking very much but putting together breakfast is something I’m more than capable of. It doesn’t seem like too much effort. And I love how different textures and tastes come together for a satisfying meal.

Chikusa in Thamel, Kathmandu, used to be our go-to brunch spot. Then we moved and Thamel is so out of the way that we rarely ever go there. Now we occasionally try out new restaurants, in hopes of finding a place that serves a nice breakfast. We haven’t been lucky. I thought it would change when we decided to go to Mr. Breakfast in Jhamsikhel, Lalitpur, on Christmas this year. I had heard quite a bit about it from my colleagues. Though the reviews were mixed, I was looking forward to it.

The place looks nice and has different kinds of seating arrangements that are visible right from the road. There’s even a cute balcony with a wrought iron table and two chairs. We thought we would sit there but it was a bit cramped and the chairs weren’t very comfortable either. We chose to sit on the bigger veranda space that had rattan furniture.

The server came quickly with the menus, which we appreciated because we were famished. A glance at it made us believe we were in for a treat. There was quite a range of options, from all the usual breakfast items to grilled chicken and other heavier meals. We took our time to decide as everything sounded really good.

We settled on a breakfast set and pancakes to start with. The set had eggs benedict, croissant, sautéed mushrooms, grilled tomatoes, potatoes, sausages, bacon, baked beans, a bowl of lettuce with dressing drizzled on top, and a bowl of fruits dipped in yogurt. It came with a choice of tea or coffee. They even let us select one from the available teas on the menu. My husband chose the tulsi tea instead of the regular milk tea. I ordered a cappuccino.

Good things first: The cappuccino came within minutes. It was what you would expect while ordering a cappuccino. They didn’t make a fuss about changing the tea that came with the breakfast set to one that’s available à la carte. And they did it at no additional cost. The server was nice, refilling our glasses of water without us even having to ask. The food was on the table within 20 minutes or so. It was plated nicely and looked delicious.

There’s nothing that can go wrong with set breakfasts. Toast is toast, unless you burn it but nobody will serve you charred bread. Fried sausages and bacon are always sinfully delightful. Grilled tomatoes taste the same everywhere. The eggs benedict, on the other hand, can be a game-changer. I was looking forward to digging into some lusciousness. But the bread was stale and the whole thing felt off. I pointed this out to the server who said they don’t bake their own bread. I didn’t know what to say to such a silly excuse. He told me he would get me a feedback form and he didn’t.

I’m a sucker for pancakes. I could have them for dinner. So, I ate my share without any complaints. There were two pieces on one plate. My husband thought it was a bit too doughy and stuck to the roof of your mouth.

We ordered grilled chicken with mashed potatoes since the breakfast wasn’t very filling. This we enjoyed. The mashed potatoes were creamy and the chicken was juicy and tender. The vegetables on the side had just the right amount of crisp. We should have just skipped breakfast and gone straight for the mains instead.

Our verdict was that Mr Breakfast wasn’t trying hard enough to stand out. It’s serving the same kind of items at similar prices. It has to work on its menu to give its customers a reason to go back. It has a lot of potential as it’s located in a nice area and the stakeholders seem to have put in a lot of thought in decorating the space to make it feel calm and relaxing.

Bibek Kumar Yadav is a cricketer who plays for the Nepal national team. The 20-year-old first came into the limelight when he was picked in the Twenty20 International squad in 2022. The right-hand batsman and right-arm medium-fast bowler has now secured a spot to play in the ICC T20 World Cup 2024. 

Yadav never dreamed about being a cricketer. He wasn’t even into the sport as a child. But things changed when schools shut down after the 2015 earthquakes. Yadav returned to his hometown, Rajbiraj, and started playing cricket when he was bored. He realized he actually enjoyed it and also had a natural flair for the game. 

Seeing him play well, one of his brothers took him to a cricket academy. Since there were way too many seniors there, Yadav didn’t get enough chances to bat. He would sneak away and play with his friends instead. That is how he practiced batting. Yadav admired Paras Khadka, who was the captain of the Nepali Cricket team from 2008 to 2019 and wanted to be as good as him. “I always tried to imitate his batting style,” says Yadav. 

In the eight years since he first picked up a cricket bat, he believes he has achieved a lot. He was ecstatic to have been selected for the national team. He didn’t make it on the first try and even thought of leaving cricket and studying engineering. He is glad he didn’t take that route.

In 2019, he made his debut in the Nepal national under-19 cricket team during a match in Hyderabad, India. In 2020, he earned the title of ‘Emerging Player’ in the PM Cup National tournament. It gave him the needed exposure to go on to play in various domestic and international matches. He has also been a regular player for the Madhesh Province Cricket Team in domestic cricket. 

After the lockdown, he participated in the Asia Youth Cup U-19 in the UAE. His impressive performances earned him a promotion to the senior team and he was later selected for Nepal’s Twenty20 International (T20I) team. In 2022, Yadav made his T20I debut against Oman.

Yadav’s breakthrough moment was when he took his first international wicket against Zeeshan Maqsood, the Pakistan-born cricketer who plays for the Oman national team and is also its captain, in the ICC T20 World Cup qualifier match against Oman. Before that, five sixes in various league matches had already earned him a steady fan base. 

But in the world of sports, his achievements don’t amount to much, he says. He still has a long way to go and a lot of hard work to do. His father, a volleyball player at the local level, always wanted to be a cricketer or a national-level sports player. Yadav says his father is now reliving his dream through his son. “My father is also my biggest supporter and motivates me to practice and give it my best,” says Yadav. 

Yadav says AB de Villiers, former South African cricketer, is his idol. He wanted his national team jersey number to be 17, just like de Villiers. When he couldn’t get that number, he settled for 71, the reverse of 17. He wishes he could have had the chance to play with de Villiers and laments that dream might never come true. 

His biggest setback to date was when he suffered a knee injury during a match in Kenya. It took him almost five months to recover. He says constant injuries, pain, and recovery are all a part of a sportsman’s journey but it can be tough to stay motivated and upbeat when everyone else is on the field. “I used to watch Indian cricketer Virat Kohli’s recovery videos for motivation,” he says, adding his family and friends have been huge support systems throughout the ups and downs. “Meditating before a match also helps me stay calm,” he says. 

Yadav doesn’t believe that a career in cricket in Nepal isn’t stable and lucrative. He says the landscape of cricket in Nepal is about to change and urges those with a passion for the game to keep practicing. Things, he says, are about to get bigger and better.

Having recently competed in T20 and ODI matches, Yadav dreams of playing in test matches in the future. With 14 matches under his belt, he says, “Cricket, for me, goes beyond batting and bowling. It makes me a better human being, fostering resilience, discipline, and ambition. The field is my classroom, and every ball is a lesson.”

In Nepal’s bicameral parliament, the National Assembly or the upper house consists of 59 members. Of them, 56 members are elected through the electoral college and three, including at least one woman, is nominated by the President on the recommendation of the government. 

Ideally, the NA is distinct from the lower house, which is dominated by politicians. It serves as an eclectic council of experts and scholars that advise the lower house or the House of Representatives during the lawmaking process. It plays a vital role in holding the HoR and the government to account. The upper house is also a permanent body, and the term of its member can last for a maximum of six years. One-third members retire every two years and elections are held accordingly.  

As election for 19 seats in the NA is set to take place on Jan 25, the major political parties—Nepali Congress, CPN-UML and CPN (Maoist Center)—are engaged in an intense horse-trade to secure positions for leaders who couldn't find their way into the lower house. They have turned the upper house into a platform to accommodate the leaders who lost the election or did not get a chance to enter the lower house under the proportional representation category. 

Instead of appointing experts as envisioned by the constitution, the major political parties have hijacked the upper house and turned it into a losers’ club. As politicians are getting elected under the expert’s quota, the NA is failing to perform its true duty, and the political parties are endorsing controversial bills.

On Monday, the cross-party leaders registered their candidacy for the NA election. The Nepali Congress has fielded its senior leader Krishna Prasad Sitaula for one of the seats. Sitaula, who played a vital role in Nepal’s peace process, lost the 2022 parliamentary elections against Rastriya Prajatantra Party Chairman Rajendra Lingden. His candidacy has drawn criticism both inside and outside the party.

Some critics are of the view that it is wrong to field somebody in the NA election who had lost the general election just a year ago. Others are calling out the Congress party for repeating the same old leaders, instead of introducing fresh faces. 

Sitaula and his party is eyeing for the post of the upper house chair, as the incumbent NA Chairman Ganesh Prasad Timalsina’s term is ending in April. Inside the party, Sitaula’s candidacy has been criticized by leaders including the general secretary duo, Bishwa Prakash Sharma and Gagan Kumar Thapa. 

“There are many others who are eligible to become members. There are leaders who have made a lot of contribution to the party and the country,” said Sharma. He noted that the party has failed to implement the provision of inclusion in its truest sense.

Thapa also expressed dissatisfaction over the party’s NA election candidates. “Our constitution has envisioned the representation of under privileged groups and experts in the National Assembly. The party’s decision goes against the standard that we set ourselves,” he said. 

The Nepali Congress is not the first and the only party that has failed to honor the spirit of the upper house. The incumbent Deputy Prime Minister and Minister for Home Affairs Narayan Kaji Shrestha from the CPN (Maoist Center) is another notable political figure to enter the NA after an electoral loss. Similarly, senior political leader Bam Dev Gautam, formerly of the UML, is also serving as an upper house member after losing the HoR election. 

The current ruling alliance, including the Congress, Maoist Center and CPN (Unified Socialist), has forged an electoral alliance, while the main opposition, CPN-UML, has decided to fight alone. The ruling coalition is likely to win almost all the seats. Although Prime Minister Pushpa Kamal Dahal wanted to accommodate the UML, his attempt did not yield any result due to the objection from some coalition partners. 

Regarding the appointments to be made by the President, the parties are unsurprisingly preparing to recommend more politicians, instead of the experts. Since its formation in 2018, there has been rare appointment of experts in the upper house. With politicians ruling the roost, the NA is no longer the conscience keeper of parliament. It has failed to function independently due to the excessive influence of the government and political parties.  

The key functions of NA

• Providing expert service
• Promulgation of laws
• Holding government accountable
• Regulation and issuing directives
• Conducting parliamentary hearing

Most of us know him as Bir Kaji aka B.K from the 2014 film Kabaddi starring Dayahang Rai, Nischal Basnet, and Rishma Gurung in leading roles. In 2015, he acted in Kabaddi Kabaddi, the sequel of Kabaddi, for which he was nominated for best actor in a comic role. His most recent film ‘Jaari’ became one of the highest-grossing Nepali films. Bijay Baral, who made his movie debut in 2013 with Chhadke, is known for his impeccable comic timing and his ability to emote through his expressions. In a conversation with Cilla Khatry of ApEx, Baral spoke about his love for acting, the things he has learned in his journey as an artist, and how being a sidekick works to his advantage. 

What do you think is the importance of stories in our society? 

Stories are important to change how people think and perceive things. Everyone has a story and every story will resonate with someone, somewhere. Every society has different forms of storytelling, be it theater, movies, literature, etc. In Nepal, I believe the most important form of storytelling is conversations that happen in public spaces, especially in rural areas. 

Sometimes, I go to Patan Durbar Squares and see elderly men and women engrossed in heated debates or whispered chats. Sharing your experience and emotions is the most impactful form of storytelling. Another great form of storytelling that makes people think and introspect is forum theater as it engages spectators to take the story forward and even change its course. 

How has Nepali cinema and theater evolved over the years? 

As someone who has spent 15 years in theater and 10 years in cinema, I believe Nepali theater and cinema both have a lot of potential. We are investing in good scripts and telling relevant stories. Nepal is rich in culture and language and that brings diversity to our narratives. Filmmakers like Nabin Subba, Deepak Rauniyar, Abinash Bikram Shah, and Min Bham are paving the way for global recognition. There is a lot of effort being put into making good cinema. 

Theater too has evolved given the limited infrastructure and resources. Many theater groups are doing amazing work. Mandala Theater recently sent 16 students, on a fully-funded program, to conduct theater classes, workshops, and stage shows all over Nepal. When Shabana Azmi was in Nepal, she was surprised to see how wonderfully theaters were operating in Nepal. We are doing the best we can with what we have. 

As an artist, how do you prepare for a role? Who is your role model? 

When I started, I didn’t understand acting. I thought I was acting in every role. I thought I was a good actor. But as time went by, you could say it gave me the maturity to understand what acting requires. Now, I focus on the character and try to understand it as much as I can through research and study. I want to comprehend the character’s psychology, emotions, traits, and behavior patterns before I start a role. 

As far as role models are concerned, I mostly take inspiration from Bollywood actors who do the kind of roles I do or with whom I seem to have physical similarities. The works of actors like Nana Patekar and Irfan Khan have taught me a lot. But I generally don’t like the idea of having a role model and aspiring to be like someone because that way you lose your unique identity. You become a replica of someone else.

What has been the biggest challenge for you as an actor and how have you overcome it?

I’m not well-versed in different cultures and that limits the kind of characters and roles I can take up. Sometimes, my personality also poses a challenge. For instance, in Dimag Kharab I took on an aggressive role. Not only was it different from the kind of fun-loving characters I usually portray, but it was also the opposite of how I am in real life. So, I had to work hard to be believable. The only way to overcome challenges in acting, I believe, is by not taking yourself too seriously as an actor. I try to be a director’s actor when I’m shooting for a film because cinema is a director’s vision. 

What are some of the lessons you have learned in your journey? What do you consider to be your valuable skills? 

The most valuable lesson I have learned is not to be overconfident and overambitious. While confidence and ambitions are nice, too much of either, I believe, will lead to your downfall. It will make you narcissistic and you will lose the ability to think critically. I have learned that as an actor you must be ready to work hard but you mustn’t have a lot of expectations on how the audience will perceive you or your work. All you can do is be honest and true to yourself and your craft. 

I’m someone who likes to talk. I enjoy talking to people. This makes me approachable and, if I might say so myself, likable to a certain extent. Professionally, I think it works in my favor and I consider it an asset. On a personal level, I’m not sure my wife appreciates it very much. She fears I will say random things and offend people (laughs).

Talent or training, which of these two factors is more important to be an actor?

Training prepares you. It gives you the confidence to get on stage or in front of the camera. Back in my village, before I got into acting, I would do caricature. I had a flair for it. But my talent would not have gotten me this far if I hadn’t undergone several acting workshops and courses after I came to Kathmandu. Training gives you the techniques required to become a good actor. Acting is reacting and, for that, you need to observe what’s going on, be emotionally ready to respond, and do that in character. Training teaches you all that and more. Training will also help you transition from one character to another with ease. 

How do you react to criticism? 

I’m human so when someone criticizes my work, especially when I’ve worked hard for a role, I get hurt and a little offended. A little part of me gets angry even though I don’t show it. But I realize feedback is necessary if I want to grow as an actor. I’m generally not the main character in a play or a movie. So, I’m usually not targeted by trolls or receive hateful comments. But there have been times when people haven’t appreciated my work and have told me never to do certain roles again. I’ve taken it in my stride. Comments, both good and bad, can be motivational. I try to channel them into good energy that I will then pour into my next project. 

Do you enjoy reading? 

I prefer reading short stories to long novels. They cater to my imagination. I find I can conjure up images clearly in my head when I’m reading a short story rather than when I’m reading longer fiction. Honestly, I read more scripts than books, and script reading takes time and dedication. But I love Upendra Subba’s poetry and constantly find myself picking up his works. But I must admit that I’m a bit lazy and that I could and should read more.

What projects are you working on next? 

I can’t say for sure which movies I will be a part of but I’m reading a lot of scripts and trying to decide which projects to take on. I have been fortunate enough to have a lot of movie offers come my way. It gives me the boost I need to keep working. One thing I’m trying to do more of this year is theater. We will soon be going to the National School of Drama in New Delhi, India, with a play that’s being directed by Bijay Karki. I’ll also be involved in quite a few plays being produced by Mandala Theater because I want to hone my acting skills and theater is the best way to do that.