The Nepali Outpost

What does it mean that a civilisation is sleeping?

Show Recommendations Include: 

Kantara Official Trailer- Rishab Shetty, Vijay Kiragandur ;  Hombale Films

Our Deities are Waking Us Up – What Kantara Means to Hindus, Shri Ramachandra Roddam; Bṛhat- Culture Engine

The only way to strengthen Indo-Nepal relations - Nirmal Mani Adhikary 

Bhagavan Parasurama: Kartavirya Arjuna, kathāmṛta 

Introduction to Yogi Naraharinath

Aneka Rebecca Rajbhandari on why Nepal and China still find each other hard to decipher. We also discuss why Nepal’s China-watchers must pay attention to the Communist Party of China’s (CPC) ideology. And why China’s Nepal experts need to talk to a diverse array of stakeholders in Nepal. We talk about her work with The Arniko Project and the importance of language.

What makes a food "Nepali"? What makes food "authentic"? Do Western cooking standards hamper how we engage with Nepali food? We talk about it all in this episode of The Nepali Outpost with guest Prashanta Khanal, whose new book Timmur – Stories and Flavours from Nepal is available in fine book stores near you. We also talk about the politics of food, question Nepal's inferiority complex, and wonder about the future of Kathmandu's foodscape. Prashanta and Slok also share their one controversial take on Nepali food -- it involves vegetable momos and Dalle Khursani. Happy Listening!

Kathmandu Post- Prashanta Khanal 

The Gandruk 

Anthony Bourdain - Parts Unknown

Street Food USA 

Masala Lab: The Science of Indian Cooking

Technology is changing Nepal. And quicky. Thankfully, Jaya Mahat and NiPoRe have their eyes on it. Hear Jaya talk about the newly released Nepal Competitiveness Index (NCI) and the Nepal Risk Outlook.

Please note: This episode was taped before the recent earthquake in Eastern Afghanistan, to learn more about the earthquake please click here.

Jhuma N Acharya, Chairperson, Board of Directors of the Bhutanese Community of Central Ohio (BCCO) on the ethnic cleansing of Nepali speakers from Bhutan in the 1990s, how he spent 19 years in refugee camps in Nepal, and his journey to the US. We talk about what it means to have multiple identities, what it means to be a refugee in the US, and why he identifies as Bhutanese-Nepali.

Namaste and welcome to Episode 5! In this episode, we speak with Aashish Mishra, a reporter for The Rising Nepal about the sacred history (and secrets) of Bagmati, the state of heritage conservation outside of the Kathmandu Valley, caste, and cultural exclusivity in Nepal. We also talk about Spiderman and why he'd not do well in Kathmandu. 

Show recommendations include:

Namaste everyone! Very often those of us from Nepal pay limited attention to the political conversations happening beyond India, China, and the West. To partially correct that, host Slok Gyawali speaks with Dr. Khurram Abbas, Research Fellow at Islamabad Policy Research Insititute (IPRI) about Imran Khan's innings as prime minister, why Pakistan has shied away from normalizing relations with Israel, and the different approaches India and Pakistan take in their relations to Gulf countries. We also talk about why some Pakistanis cheered the Taliban victory in Afghanistan and the return of cricket to Pakistan.

Shiva P. Tiwari, the managing editor of the Nepali Journal of Contemporary Studies, speaks to The Nepali Post about Nepali political elites' tendency to drag great powers into Nepal's internal politics and the state of knowledge production in Nepal. We also talk about why China prefers to engage with the Nepali Communists and not the Nepali Congress, the tragedy depicted in Prakash Saput's Pir, and Hindu politics in India and Nepal.   

In this episode of The Nepali Outpost, I speak with Paavan Mathema, Chief correspondent AFP Kathmandu Bureau, about the pandemic, upcoming Everest season, Paul Shah, and her career as a journalist. She also shares her book/movie/show/podcast recommendation (see below):