Submit your Article

In a rapidly developing Nepal, where skyscrapers rise and digital trends dominate, a quiet but powerful movement is underway—led by the youth. From ancient jatras to fading rituals, young Nepalis are reconnecting with their roots, using creativity, curiosity, and technology to preserve and promote their cultural heritage in meaningful ways. ApEx spoke to three people to understand their thought process behind this.

Bidhan Shrestha, 20

As a Newar, I feel deeply connected to my culture and jatras. Growing up in a Newa community, I’ve always participated in rituals, dances, and festivals. Our cultural heritage is not just our identity but also a key driver of tourism, which contributes significantly to Nepal’s economy. In today’s modern world, social media has helped spread awareness of our traditions. Photographers, vloggers, and youth are using these platforms to promote culture and some are even earning from it. Participation among young people is increasing, not because they’re forced, but because they’re genuinely curious and proud of their roots. With technology, learning from our elders, and celebrating our culture, we can carry our legacy forward with pride.

Krish Shakya, 22

Growing up with festivals like Indra Jatra and traditional Newari customs has made me feel connected to my roots. Sadly, I don’t think enough is being done to preserve our architecture, customs, and festivals. Modernization is slowly erasing what makes us unique. However, I believe young people still care. We just need new ways to engage. We should adapt certain practices to modern times while preserving their essence. Youth can play a vital role by learning, sharing, and actively promoting our heritage in creative, digital ways.

Bina Poudel, 24

Nepal’s cultural heritage means a lot to me. It keeps me connected to home and gives me a strong sense of identity. I don’t see the efforts being done to preserve them. As youths, we have the power to protect and promote our heritage through awareness and digital platforms. While some young people still value cultural practices, many are drifting away. I believe we should preserve the essence of our traditions but adapt the way we celebrate them to fit the modern world and keep them alive for future generations. 

The cardinal rule of style is that your clothes must fit you well. A bad fit makes you look sloppy whereas a good fit makes you look appealing. It’s a small thing but the impact is huge. However, just wearing good clothes doesn’t ensure your look is complete. Even designer clothes can actually fall flat and look average if you don’t style it well. Here are some style rules that you must follow to look your best in every outfit.

Pair your outfit with the right shoes

Shoes can often make or break your outfit. Shoes should be practical and comfortable. But they should also match with your clothes, in terms of style and color. Ideally, you should have at least a pair of black heels, ankle length boots in a neutral shade, some ballerina flats, a nice pair of sneakers, and some great open toe sandals in your wardrobe. Dark shoes will kill an outfit if there is nothing dark in the ensemble to balance out its harshness. So pair dark clothes with dark shoes and lighter clothes with lighter shoes. Also, dresses and suits look good with heels while casual clothes work well with kitten heels, flats, or sandals. Shoes with pointy toes give an illusion of length to your legs and look better than those with rounded or flat toes.

Play with jewelry

Most of us wear the same rings or ear studs with every outfit. It seems like such a hassle to keep changing out of our regular ones to match with our clothes. But you are doing yourself a great disservice by not experimenting with jewelry. Dress up your outfit with pretty necklaces, earrings, bracelets, or rings. However, don’t go overboard with it and use many pieces together. Rather, choose to make one or two the highlight of your outfit. There are many brands these days that sell affordable jewelry, both real and imitation. Invest in pieces that make you feel comfortable and you feel good wearing and switch them up. We recommend Maya Handicraft Jewelry for some good quality silver pieces that are timeless and you can wear with pretty much anything. Palmonas, the Indian brand of demi-fine jewelry, owned by the Bollywood actor Shraddha Kapoor, also has some great designs.

Beautiful bags to elevate your look

Are you guilty of carrying the same bag day in and day out and only switching it up when it starts to fall apart or when the season changes and you feel like you need a bag that goes with it? Bags are great statement pieces and can really elevate your look if styled right. Most of us tend to buy black bags thinking it will go with everything but the overall effect tends to be a bit drag. Slouchy bags look good with casual wear while structured ones that hold form are great for office and a more formal look. If you can, don’t carry large bags with dresses and suits and they tend to take the impact away from your clothes. Choose simpler, smaller ones instead. Clutches or crossbody bags also go really well with dresses. There are many styles of bags available—from larger totes and hobos to smaller side bags and crossbodies—that you don’t have to stick to a particular one for all your outfits.

Experiment with your style

Most of us have a particular style of dressing depending on our preferences and we rarely, if ever, switch things up. But unless you experiment with your clothes and dressing sense you will not know what looks good on you and how you can change how you look and feel simply by changing the way you dress. You don’t have to make sudden or drastic changes. Start by making small alterations in the way you dress. If you aren’t a big fan of accessories, try adding a piece or two every now and then. A scarf, hat, or even a funky piece of jewelry that you wouldn’t otherwise wear can change your style. Look for fashion inspiration, online and around you. Try making a mood board of different styles. Once you feel confident with small changes, you can make bigger ones with fabrics, textures, and designs.

“All these so-called feminists and feminism are making motherhood undesirable.” I’ve heard this too many times from people who haven’t bothered to understand what feminism truly stands for. Feminism doesn’t scare women away from motherhood—what does is the expectation of doing it all alone. Feminism has never condemned having children. Instead, it seeks to reclaim motherhood by challenging its negative stereotypes. It says: “Have a baby when you’re ready, not because society pressures you,” and “Motherhood shouldn’t derail a woman’s career or dreams—mothers deserve equal support from their partners and families.”

“Feminists don’t scare women away from motherhood. What scares them is the silence in the room when the baby cries past midnight and no one else gets up.” Too often, society frames motherhood as the end of a woman’s personal and professional aspirations. The anxiety isn’t about the baby—it’s the fear of losing one’s identity, freedom, and dreams, since women are still expected to bear the full cost of parenting. Many now believe financial stability and emotional security are essential before having children, which is why they wait until they’re truly ready.

Saying “we’re pregnant” isn’t enough—that “we” must extend through the entire journey. While mothers undergo physical changes, the workload should be shared. When feminists highlight this imbalance, they’re not rejecting motherhood; they’re asking: “Why is it still unequal?” Feminism dares to voice what women whisper at 3 am.: “I love my child, but I need help. I’m exhausted.” Yet this is misread as negativity.

Silencing feminists won’t protect motherhood—the solution lies in listening and redesigning a system where no woman must choose between motherhood and herself. “She thinks it’s only her. We had kids at her age and didn’t complain. We survived without support.” But when a young woman says, “This is hard,” the world rolls its eyes: “We did it, so can you.” They forget surviving isn’t thriving. Just because past generations endured doesn’t mean women today should carry the burden alone. Feminism insists: “You shouldn’t have to ‘figure it out’ just because others did. Your life and dreams matter.”

Then there’s the silent pressure—”Have a child; it’ll save the marriage.” As if a baby is glue, not a human. Motherhood should never be a bargaining chip. No woman should be guilted into it to avoid divorce. This is the oppression feminism fights—where a woman’s womb is treated as a solution to someone else’s fear, and her choice is erased. When motherhood becomes a tool for control or saving face, that’s not sacred—it’s oppression. True feminism champions a mother’s choice—freely, fully, and with dignity. It doesn’t turn women against motherhood; it advocates for a version that values and supports them.

“You can continue your studies after a baby—what’s the big deal?” But it’s never that simple. Who cares for the baby during class? Who shares the sleepless nights? The constant balancing act? The culprit isn’t ambition—it’s the lack of support and shared responsibility that makes education harder for mothers than for their partners. Young wives face relentless hints: “When’s your turn? We want to see our grandchild before we die.” Everyone prepares for the baby—but who prepares her for the emotional toll? Feminism says: “You can be a good partner without being ready for motherhood.”

“We’ll take care of the baby—just have it.” But who defines “take care”? Is it just diapers, or life-altering decisions? What if the mother wants to be present in her child’s early years—with the time, energy, and peace to do so? It’s not about waiting too long—it’s about being ready physically, emotionally, and financially. Historically, motherhood was a woman’s “primary purpose.” Limited opportunities enforced this ideal. But times have changed. Today, women shape their futures through education, careers, and choice. Feminism has redefined motherhood—no longer about fulfilling others’ expectations, but about empowerment and shared responsibility. We’re moving toward a world where mothers choose motherhood on their own terms, embracing every facet of who they are.

Life can get unnecessarily difficult at times so it helps to simplify things whenever possible. Little things can go a long way in making everyday life easy. Here are some simple ways to reduce the complexities of life. They might not solve your larger problems but they will definitely give you more time to focus on what’s important and clear up mental space for you to deal with the bigger issues.

Meal prep in advance

Meal prepping is the easiest way to shorten your time in the kitchen and make healthy meals accessible. So take some time out, once a week or once every two to three days, to wash and chop your veggies, marinate chicken, and soak or stream pulses and grains. Having healthy ingredients on hand will make cooking seem less like a chore. You can also batch make tomato puree and ginger garlic paste and freeze this to use when you need, saving valuable time. Invest in some lightweight containers to store chopped vegetables in the fridge.

Invest in an air fryer

Kitchen gadgets help reduce the time you spend cooking by making chopping, blending, frying etc. easier and efficient. In many cases, they also save the time you would spend cleaning afterwards. A blender is a necessity in the kitchen. This will make everything—from making purées to juices—easy and effortless. It’s good to have a microwave as well as this will help you reheat food in minutes and without the need for extra pots and pans. But what we especially recommend is an air fryer. It’s a game changer and can promote healthy eating habits as well. An air fryer eliminates the need to use a lot of oil. In some cases, you don’t need oil at all. It’s a great time-saving alternative to frying that can be messy and time consuming and you can make basically everything from French Fries to Grilled Chicken in it.

Deal with clutter on a regular basis

You might not realize it but clutter can make everyday activities a hassle. You might struggle to find your keys or wallet as you leave home or lose or misplace things on a daily basis. By clearing out clutter—throwing mail you don’t need or storing things away—you will be creating more space in your life for things that matter and also make your home more aesthetically appealing. Take 10 to 15 minutes a day, every morning or before you go to bed, to put things away and toss things like receipts and wrappers that have gathered from the day. You will find that a cleaner home makes life so much smoother.

Schedule one day a week for grocery shopping

As we go about our busy days with a gazillion things to deal with, there is often the added pressure to do things like shop for food, buy toilet paper or soap etc. Although they might seem like small things, they take up mental energy and time. Scheduling a weekly grocery run simplifies things and saves you the trouble of having to run to the store for one thing or the other time and again. Make a list of things you need and shop in one go. You can also try stocking up on essentials like toilet paper, soap, toothpaste and the like to have to buy them once a month and not every or every other week.

Have a go-to bag of essentials near the door

More often than not, it’s a mad rush to get out of the house. As we run about gathering things we need, we keep forgetting something or the other and thus moving about the house to find them. Having a bag of essentials near the door or in a drawer by the door or shoe cabinet will ease this tedious process. Grab a large pouch and put things like tissues, lip balms, masks, pens, hair ties and other things you might need when you are going out in it. This will be your go-to bag of sorts that you can quickly grab things from when you are running late and find that you haven’t carried something you need. Keep this where you keep your keys or at least nearby so that it’s easily accessible. We guarantee this will help you reach wherever you are going on time.

Maintain an organized bedside table 

An organized bedside table can make you more productive as well as make your early morning or bedtime routine more comfortable. Not only does a well kept bedside area make your bedroom seem calmer and more put together, it also saves you the trouble of having to get up to fetch things as you wind down for the day. It’s a convenient space to store your essentials that you might sometimes even need in the middle of the night. You don’t want to go waddling through the house for a glass of water or a painkiller during the middle of the night. Place a nice glass tumbler with water next to your alarm clock and book and some basics like painkillers, creams, and throat lozenges in a tray in the drawer below it. The idea is to keep everything you need close by so that you don’t have to keep getting out of bed at night.