Manasbi Chautaari

Shitosh Parajuli joins from Seattle, WA, USA, to talk about his sudden rise from a global rank of 253407 to 27233 over the last two seasons in the most popular Fantasy Premier League. FPL is an online drafting game from the English Premier League that casts fans as Fantasy managers of Premier League players. Managers then pick a squad of 15 players with a budget of £100m who score points for the team based on their real-life performances in the Premier League. On average, there are 9 million players who register for the FPL.

In this episode, Shitosh shares lessons he learned in the last 1.5 years to experiment in the 2021/22 season that saw him finish 27233. The self-proclaimed “special one” FPL manager debunks common pitfalls that average FPL managers fall into when drafting their teams and suggests new trips, tricks, and tools that can take them to the next level in the leagues within their circles. At the end of the episode, Shitosh also reveals his FPL team for Gameweek 1.

Shitosh’s Previous Seasons: https://fantasy.premierleague.com/entry/156118/history

Resources mentioned in the episode:

Twitter: @BenCrellin (https://twitter.com/bencrellin)

Price Change Predictor: http://www.fplstatistics.co.uk/Home/IndexAndroid

FPL Team Planner: https://fpl.team

Let’s Talk FPL YT Channel: https://www.youtube.com/c/LetsTalkFPL

Disclaimer: Manasbi Chautaari is not affiliated with any of the links above, which are mentioned for informational purposes.

Manisha Lamsal didi joins from Kathmandu, Nepal, to talk about the experiences of growing up as a woman in a patriarchal and misogynistic Nepali society. Manisha didi is currently involved in research about hair and its social aspects. A mother of three years old, Manisha didi starts her conversation by going over her story of intercaste marriage. We discuss the many subtle differences we can find between a boy and a girl growing up in the same home and how that affects the social dynamics of all our relationships. The differences cover cultural norms that elders force on their daughters because 20-25 years from now, after marriage, they will be representing their family values to in-laws and hence need to compromise on many things. We also cover the culture of tagging household chores to gender and dismantle the idea that men “help” and women “are responsible.” We also go over how our society has masked the notion that festivals are for celebrations when most of the time, only males relax by playing cards. In contrast, women are expected to be in the kitchen all day to prepare a large variety of dishes.

Towards the end, we discuss and provide ideas to start unlearning the biases and misogynistic ideals we have unknowingly practiced. Manisha didi shares how she has been raising her daughter as well. We also briefly discuss the legal aspects of gender discrimination and why the legal jargon and clauses have made it difficult for women to speak up about their experiences.

If you like the episode, please share it on social media for more exposure and elaborate discussions. Also, subscribe or follow Manasbi Chautaari on your favorite podcast platform to get notifications about new episodes. I would also appreciate it if you could leave reviews about the show.

My college friend Prateek Gautam joins from New Jersey, USA, to talk about Financial Literacy. Prateek is a high school teacher specializing in Mathematics and Computer Science in NJ. Also, he has opened Zest Wealth Management Private Limited in Nagarjun Municipality in Kathmandu, which manages funds to ensure higher ROI through diversified investments across the Nepalese market. In the episode, we cover money topics such as investing, budgeting, clearing debts, and saving money which is crucial for financial independence. Prateek shares his experiences with financial literacy, opens up about his multiple sources of income, and provides invaluable tips for managing and increasing money with the power of Compound Interest. 

In the first-ever episode with two guests in my show, I am joined by my school friends whom I have known since 2004. From NYC, US, Nima Lama is a recent college graduate in Computer Science. He is currently working on projects to expand online education and virtual health care, starting from Kalikasthan in his home district, Rasuwa, and eventually throughout Nepal. Nripesh Pradhan, from California, US, is a Data Scientist at Chipper focusing on solving problems related to growth and fraud in the fintech industry.

In this episode, which some people might find sensitive and controversial, we provide our Millennial's perspective on one of many aspects of Casteism in Nepal: Intercaste Marriage. We wanted to focus strictly on just one aspect of Casteism as it is impossible to fit all of them in a tiny episode.

As millennials who studied in Nepal until high school and then pursued their bachelor's degrees in the USA, we share why Intercaste Marriage should be a thing of the past and how we should start making changes starting from our family. We suggest listening to the entire episode with an open mind.

Nima and Nripesh also touch on the negotiation tactics used by parents to force same caste marriage. Also, we unravel the pressure children fall to respect their parents' decisions because going against the decisions is tantamount to discrediting parents' struggles to raise the children, even if the educated children have written hundreds of essays in their Social Science classes refuting the practice of Casteism.

In the latter part of the show, we touch on the ramifications of leaving out surnames that our alma mater Budhanilkantha School has been practicing since its inception in 1972. Although the school had the good intention of enforcing only roll numbers and first names to address among students, we wonder if the school could have included full names and made us more ready to tackle Casteism head-on. After all, the school is a perfect understudy of how discrimination can be eradicated with its mini Nepal model as students from various backgrounds study here.

For the older generation harvesting the thoughts about putting same caste marriage demands on their children and criticizing discussions from newer generations in the name of culture and tradition, I suggest listening to our opinions with an open mind. If you strongly feel that these three folks living in the US are far from the reality of not respecting traditions and want to share your opinions in my podcast, please reach out to me. I would love that.

As a disclaimer, we foresee the shortcomings of the opinions presented by the guests in this episode where all three people have not experienced Casteism issues and mostly deducing their thoughts from their exposure to critical thinking. We have accepted the fact, and hence, I plan to bring in guests who have experienced discrimination in future episodes.

I intended the episode to be a starting point to continue the conversation and make rational decisions for a better future where people's hard work and struggles from all backgrounds are not discredited solely by their so-called "castes." Also, in this ever-evolving social network world, I did not want to limit the conversations to purely online chat groups among just a few friends. Instead, I invited my friends and used my podcast platform to spark meaningful discussions and eventually take action to make changes.

Today, I am joined by my Health and Physical Education teacher, Mr. Mohan Karki, and an alumnus of my alma mater Budhanilkantha School. Mohan sir takes a trip down the memory lane from 1983 when he first sat for entrance exams for Grade 4 to Budhanilkantha School. Born in Lui village in Mugu District, Mohan sir details his childhood. He elaborates on the arduous journey and challenges he took from his rural village to study at Budhanilkantha School, Kathmandu, Nepal. We discuss language barriers to learning due to differences between Khas, a predominantly spoken language in the Karnali zone, and Nepali, the language spoken at the school, and how Mohan sir navigated through them with hard work and perseverance.

In the latter half of the show, Mohan sir elaborates on teaching philosophies he has preached over his 33 years long career. He shares the differences he has noticed in teaching from earlier decades and touches on the digital transformation he had to adjust when the pandemic affected the education of students.

Chemical Engineer Aadarsh Jung Shah joins from Philadelphia, PA, USA, to cover his love for running, one of his favorite things that he does daily. We talk about many nuances of running, the preparations for his upcoming Philadelphia marathon, and how in 2020, Aadarsh defeated the evil villain Consistency to form a habit that continues to this day. We also share tips and tricks to start your running adventure and motivations for staying consistent. After all, we all had tried running but gave up on it when the weather was bad one day. Also, we share an experience in our friend circle about a $100 bet that involves running, providing you with a proven way to run every day.

First-Year Ph.D. student Rojina Shrestha joins from Fort Collins, CO, USA, to discuss her experiences pursuing a Ph.D. in Cell and Molecular Biology. The episode extensively covers how Ph.D. students spend their lives daily, the stress around striving to publish their research papers eventually, and the burning question of how many hours of sleep students usually get. Rojina also somewhat tries to answer the question, "How many years are left to complete your Ph.D.?" a question that I discovered Ph.D. students pray nobody asks them. Additionally, we go over the existing belief of "Publish or Perish" in academia and its impact on academic integrity in the long run.

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Shambhavi Basnet joins from Kathmandu, Nepal, to talk about her recent career switch when she completed her Master's Degree in Development Economics from Germany to become a Professional Writer, a field she had no prior education experience. We talk about the challenges she faced in making the switch, the regrets as to why she did not have the thought after her Bachelor's sooner, and how she is enjoying the new lifestyle. Shambhavi also gives insights into her writing process and discusses her upcoming debut book.  

Shambhavi's works can be read at: https://linktr.ee/shambhavi.basnet.

Prajjwal Dangal joins from Colorado Springs, CO, USA, to discuss his love for Cybersecurity, the field he just completed a Master's Degree in. We touch on crucial topics in the vast area and reveal why everyone needs to take the security aspects of their digital lives more seriously. We delve deep into discussions around using Password Manager for hundreds of sites we use every day and enabling MultiFactorAuthentication (MFA) for all of our applications, two of the most important habits to embrace in this digital world.

Sharthak Neupane joins from Kathmandu as he talks about his story of leaving the American dream just three days after his graduation to return to Nepal and establish RB Merchant Pvt Ltd in Baneshwor, Kathmandu. The company supplies medical equipment to hospitals around the country. Worth noting is that Sharthak did not have any knowledge of medical equipment before starting his journey. He shares the experience of leaving the comfort of the first world country to return to his homeland, where he has implemented a progressive approach in handling his company.