Taken in totality, Nepali mainstream cinema concerns itself with a specific ideological inclination, a tendency towards ‘melodramatic realism’.
Disguised as social realism, this is cinema of affirmation cloaked in the language of critique. This tendency is not indigenous but inherited: <a href="https://archive.nepalitimes.com/article/Nepali-Times-Buzz/Lights-camera-copy-paste,1146">a diluted echo and imitation of Bollywood</a>.&nbsp;
Film directors, driven by the understandable desire for commercial viability, have adopted Bollywood's worst tendencies: its emotional maximalism and narrative predictability. But they have done so without the budget, without its system, without its technicality.
The result is cinema that mimics form without function. The cinematography with its saturated colour and glamour-obsessed image is an aesthetic colonisation. Let us name it what it is: a cinema of sympathy.
<a href="https://nepalitimes.com/review/powerful-movie-upacks-questions-of-identity">Social injustice</a> is not interrogated but assumed. Suffering is not resisted but aestheticised. Characters do not struggle to change the world, they endure it. They are saints in ragged clothes, martyrs in the mountains, whose nobility lies in their passivity. In this cinema, pain is purity, and purity is always poor.
These films are said to reflect contemporary society—but they do so in the way a mirror reflects a dream: distorted, beautified, bathed in the light of sentimentalism. They portray not society as it is, but as it feels to remember. What we have, then, is not realism, but a kind of sentimental mythos.
The culprits are not hard to find. They are the most celebrated directors of our time. Their films win national awards, their actors become stars. Yet what unites them all — from rural dramedies like Kabaddi, family melodramas like Prasad, or soft-issue social parables like Saili — is a fundamental conservatism of narrative logic.&nbsp;
If there is politics, it is personal. If there is history, it is just the setting. Society, in these films, is static. The caste system, the labour exodus, gendered violence, these are presented as conditions of nature, not conditions of power. To suffer within them is to be good, to fight against them would be, it seems, impolite.
What defines this tendency is its inability to dramatise complexity. The films are either naively dualistic or neurotically symbolic. <a href="https://nepalitimes.com/here-now/she-is-the-story">Women are either goddesses or ghosts</a>. Men are either stoic heroes or cartoonish predators. The poor are noble. The rich are cruel. Nothing is ambiguous. Nothing is difficult. Nothing is allowed to breathe.
Most insidious is the rise of populist humour, that soft, crowd-pleasing comedy which diffuses even the most tragic premises, like a nervous laugh at a funeral. Laughter that is not disruptive.&nbsp;
This humour, often rooted in exaggerated dialect, village caricature, or romantic incompetence, serves to neutralise discomfort. It appears not only in comedies but in ‘social drama’, where it functions as an emotional pressure valve. A girl is nearly sold into marriage — but wait, here comes the lovable drunk uncle with a one-liner.&nbsp;
The humour, while infectious , mocks just the symptoms like arranged marriage and patriarchal values, but not the structures themselves. There is no class struggle here, only romantic miscommunication. When misogyny appears, it is played for laughs, when caste lines emerge, they're side-stepped in favour of musical reconciliation.&nbsp;
Politicians are corrupt, yes, but hilariously so. Systemic failure is rendered absurd, not grotesque. Their jokes are universal. But in avoiding discomfort, they also avoid depth. They laugh with the people, not for them.
But why are we laughing? And what are we laughing at? If the answer is that we are laughing without bitterness and rage, at our own condition, then our cinema is no longer a mirror but a lullaby.
Even stylistically, the image is clean but unimaginative, the dialogue is moralistic, almost liturgical. The endings are too often redemptive, even when they pretend to be tragic. One watches these films not to be challenged, but to be comforted: to be reminded that pain is meaningful, that goodness suffers, that, in the end, Nepal is still beautiful.
But cinema is not therapy. It is not the job of film to make pain feel poetic. To reduce our political and economic trauma to matters of individual heartbreak is not just aesthetically lazy, it is dangerous. This is how ideology works: not through propaganda, but through sentiment.&nbsp;
The films, by making injustice feel tragic instead of intolerable, teach audiences not to resist reality, but to accept it.&nbsp;
This is not to say that all cinema is compromised. There are filmmakers, few but growing—who refuse the consolation of melodrama, like Min Bahadur Bham's <a href="https://archive.nepalitimes.com/article/must-see/Kalo-pothi-review,3101">The Black Hen</a>, and Sujit Bidari's <a href="https://nepalitimes.com/here-now/nepali-new-wave-cinema">Butterfly on the Windowpane</a>, which create spaces of silence, of interiority. Their characters are not metaphors, but people. Their conflicts are not tidy, their resolutions are not redemptive. In short, they resist the tendency.
But <a href="https://nepalitimes.com/here-now/min-bahadur-bham-s-cinematic-quest">these exceptions only highlight the rule</a>. The mainstream appetite, whether among producers or the public, still favours the emotionally saturated, the morally clear and the forced humour.&nbsp;
"Show Nepal," they say. "Make it cry. Make it real. But not too real."
What has become of anger in our cinema? What has become of satire, irony, provocation? Where are the films that disrupt rather than reflect? That confront the audience, rather than embrace them?&nbsp;
If art is meant to mirror society, then what society are we mirroring? A quiet one, perhaps, a stoic one, a beautiful one. But not a just one.
This is the paradox of our cinema: in trying so hard to reflect the people, it forgets to challenge them. In trying to represent suffering, it aestheticises it. In trying to honour tradition, it enshrines conservatism.
Cinema should not be devotional. It should not be a hymn. It must be a question. And until directors begin to ask those questions — not in press kits, but in the language of cinema itself — we will remain, for all fanfare and film festivals, a national cinema without a national consciousness. &nbsp;
Abishek Budhathoki is a multidisciplináry artist specialising in media and mass culture. He has directed a number of short films and has also worked on feature films and documentaries.

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Nepali cinema’s melodramatic realism

Nepali films have in the past often portrayed women in limited, one-dimensional roles: selfless mothers, obedient wives, or victims of abuse.&nbsp; Nepal’s very first feature film, Ama was a pioneering drama portraying the socio-political landscape of the 1960s <a href="https://nepalitimes.com/here-now/mob-movement-and-mayhem">Panchayat era Nepal</a>. But it reinforced traditional <a href="https://nepalitimes.com/banner/hop-over-the-gender-gap">gender roles</a> where women are caregivers, who silently bear emotional labour, while men are protectors and providers. The mother’s strength is portrayed in her endurance in separation from her soldier son, but she still exists largely just there to support the male protagonist’s journey. “A man was always the hero, that was the norm. Women are either victimised or their struggles are over sensitised,” says<a href="https://www.shantanepaliproductions.com/"> Shanta Nepali</a>, director and cinematographer. “Many have raised awareness through their films, but when it comes to true representation of <a href="https://nepalitimes.com/editorial/quality-of-equality-for-women">women’s issues</a>, we are still far behind.” Plan International Nepal in a <a href="https://plan-international.org/uploads/sites/79/2022/02/womenincinema_3.pdf">research paper </a>breaks down Matighar directed by BS Thapa and starring Bollywood star Mala Sinha into three acts: first where Maya is a romantic lead who is soon widowed and abandoned, she is then forced to flee with her young son and work in a brothel, and finally she seeks a better future for her son.&nbsp; In the end, Maya is accepted back into society but essentially through mercy, highlighting the film’s theme of domesticity as a woman’s rightful place. Not much has changed since the early days of <a href="https://nepalitimes.com/here-now/nepal-s-qfx-cinema-needs-a-happy-ending">Nepali cinema</a>, although there have been some recent attempts to alter the <a href="https://nepalitimes.com/uncategorized/stereotyping-women-as-victims">stereotype</a>. “Women are still largely seen as eye candy, sidekicks, or an element of glamour rather than a central character driving the story. Their portrayal remains superficial, lacking depth and complexity,” says theatre director and actor Akanchha Karki of <a href="http://kathaghera.com//">Katha Ghera</a>. “There has been some progress in recent years, but not nearly enough.” More recent movies like Shambhala and Rajagunj have tried to break through the mould. <a href="https://nepalitimes.com/here-now/min-bahadur-bham-s-cinematic-quest">Min Bahadur Bham</a>’s Shambhala is centred around a complex female character defined not just by men around her but her own ambitions and struggles. Pema played by <a href="https://nepalitimes.com/here-now/nepal-s-star-shines-in-locarno">Thinley Lhamo </a>is an active agent of her own story of self-discovery in the face of <a href="https://nepalitimes.com/opinion/perpetuating-patriarchy-in-nepal">patriarchy</a>. Rajagunj directed by Deepak Rauniyar follows inspector Pooja Thapa who is sent to a Madhes town to investigate the kidnapping of two boys amidst <a href="https://archive.nepalitimes.com/regular-columns/Comment/southern-nepal-in-middle-of-a-humanitarian-crisis,579">political unrest and violent protests</a>.&nbsp;  <figure> <img src="https://publisher-publish.s3.eu-central-1.amazonaws.com/pb-nepalitimes/swp/asv65r/media/20250329140320_22bd4b6cb901014afb3d166dc4d9e56217f049f3a024d6cd11025fc9c981986f.jpg" data-media-id="editor_12" data-image-id="20250329140320_22bd4b6cb901014afb3d166dc4d9e56217f049f3a024d6cd11025fc9c981986f" data-rendition-name="original" width="5796" height="3870" loading="lazy" alt="Rajagunj"> <figcaption>Still from Rajagunj </figcaption> </figure>  Read also:<a href="https://nepalitimes.com/review/powerful-movie-upacks-questions-of-identity"> Powerful movie upacks questions of identity</a>, Sophia L. Pandé Even the 2001 film Numafung by Nabin Subba stands out for an empowering portrayal of women, and a rare glimpse of Limbu customs. After being widowed early, Numafung is expected to marry her late husband’s younger brother but defies tradition in the pursuit of her own independence.&nbsp; Although the 2019 film Xira directed by Ashutosh Raj Shrestha was critically panned, it did introduce an action-oriented, assertive, revenge-driven female protagonist played by Namrata Sharma. Nepali cinema often takes<a href="https://archive.nepalitimes.com/article/Nepali-Times-Buzz/Lights-camera-copy-paste,1146"> inspiration from Bollywood</a> which has also seen a shift in how women are portrayed. Older films like Pink directed by Aniruddha Roy Chowdhury critiqued societal prejudices against independent women as well as emphasised the importance of consent. Last year’s Laapata Ladies directed by Kiran Rao was a critical and commercial success. Through slice-of-life storytelling, the satirical drama set in rural India advocates <a href="https://nepalitimes.com/news/the-goal-is-empowerment-and-independence-of-women">women’s empowerment</a>, <a href="https://nepalitimes.com/latest/sisterhoods-empowering-education-in-nepal?fb_comment_id=4994256443922836_5028381260510354">education</a>, and <a href="https://nepalitimes.com/opinion/placing-nepali-women-first-past-the-post">equality</a>. Meanwhile, Mrs, a Hindi adaptation of The Great Indian Kitchen, follows a young woman after an arranged marriage in which she finds her aspirations suppressed. A big part of the reason behind often stereotypical portrayals of women on screen is the lack of female filmmakers, directors, writers, and producers. “Many women who started alongside me are no longer in the field, people try to break you mentally,” says Shanta Nepali. “I also faced caste discrimination, so it is even more difficult for women from marginalised communities.” Nepali is creating platforms such as the Nepali Female Filmmakers’ Community for women to actively engage in the field. She adds: “Even men struggle in this industry but when a woman says she wants to direct, the discouragement outweighs the support. It feels like going to war.” Anjila is a recent biopic based on the real-life journey of Anjila Tumbapo Subba, the captain and goalkeeper of national women’s football team. Subba plays herself, and the movie depicts her struggles and achievements in a male-dominated field.&nbsp; Akanchha Karki says that women-centric films often struggle at the box office. Audience preference for action-packed, masala drama discourages <a href="https://nepalitimes.com/banner/taking-nepali-literature-to-the-world">nuanced narrative</a> as well as reinforces the traditional beauty standards, perpetuating unrealistic ideals.&nbsp; “Producers and directors don’t invest in them because they don’t do as well, making it harder to break the cycle,” explains Karki. “Even current women filmmakers in the field often feel compelled to prioritise commercial viability over authentic <a href="https://nepalitimes.com/here-now/they-have-stories-to-yell">storytelling</a>.”

She is the story

There was controlled chaos at the Chhaya Centre on 8 September before the premiere of <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=N2EXOwDgrIg&amp;t=25s">Shambhala</a>, which has made history as the first South Asian film to be selected for the 2023 Berlinale in-competition lineup in three decades. <a href="https://www.imdb.com/name/nm5336883/">Director Min Bahadur Bham</a> ran around, dreadlocks flailing, to test the DCP in the projection room and welcome an all-star lineup of guests. Even so, he found time to sit down with us for an interview in a quiet corner in the lobby. Despite visible signs of stress, Bham’s passion for his craft shines through. The premiere was the culmination of years of work, but as Bham tells it, the true essence of filmmaking is the journey itself.  <figure> <img src="https://publisher-publish.s3.eu-central-1.amazonaws.com/pb-nepalitimes/swp/asv65r/media/20240912100956_fe4bb576edb2f6ca22d460c425a8b9fdf8d3855dd4e9cac9e13fb56a69094cdd.jpg" data-media-id="editor_2" data-image-id="20240912100956_fe4bb576edb2f6ca22d460c425a8b9fdf8d3855dd4e9cac9e13fb56a69094cdd" data-rendition-name="original" width="616" height="585" loading="lazy" alt="Min Bham NT 3 "> </figure>  Min Bahadur Bham, 40, was born in isolated Mugu. As a boy he already knew he wanted to be a film director after his photographer and journalist father bought a cinema hall in his hometown.&nbsp; While watching Bollywood movies there, his friends all wanted to be actors and would imitate the mannerisms of their favourite stars. But Bham craved something more.&nbsp; “Even back then, I wondered who tells the actors what to do. There must be someone guiding and coordinating their performance,” he says. “I didn’t know at the time that it was done by a director, but I instinctively felt that was the person I wanted to be.”&nbsp; Read also: <a href="https://nepalitimes.com/here-now/a-director-from-kathmandu">A director from Kathmandu</a>, Sewa Bhattarai This early fascination set Bham on a journey that would take him far, far away from Mugu. In Grade 8 he was already saving money for film school, and by Grade 10 he had run away from home. He started in theatre in Kathmandu, learning acting, lighting, set design, and costume. This theatre background proved to be formative and influenced his later approach to cinema. “If I had to choose, I’d still give more points to theatre,” he tells us. “It’s a pure art form, it has a poetic and an artistic sense to it, requiring discipline and hard work, unlike the finances and glamour of cinema.” Beyond filmmaking, Bham developed a deep interest in <a href="https://nepalitimes.com/here-now/medication-to-meditation-in-the-mountains">spirituality</a>. “Creating art is a form of meditation,” Bham says, his eyes shimmering with intensity. “Filmmaking, like meditation, requires pouring all of yourself into it.” His debut feature,<a href="https://archive.nepalitimes.com/article/must-see/Kalo-pothi-review,3101"> Kalo Pothi (The Black Hen)</a> premiered at the Venice Film Festival in 2015, earning critical acclaim for its nuanced portrayal of two boys caught in the crossfire of <a href="https://nepalitimes.com/banner/all-is-fair-in-war-and-peace">Nepal’s Maoist insurgency</a>. The film’s success, however, left Bham ambivalent.&nbsp;  <figure> <img src="https://publisher-publish.s3.eu-central-1.amazonaws.com/pb-nepalitimes/swp/asv65r/media/20240912110924_b4333fc1aeefc7adc6160a183f0dfc8ca5ee8cd66df6eab085f47436d83c8c4b.jpg" data-media-id="editor_7" data-image-id="20240912110924_b4333fc1aeefc7adc6160a183f0dfc8ca5ee8cd66df6eab085f47436d83c8c4b" data-rendition-name="original" width="1442" height="1008" loading="lazy" alt="Movie posters NT"> </figure>  “I felt burdened by the success," he confides. “Looking back, I’m critical about its lack of cinematic language: it felt more like a film essay.”&nbsp; Read more: <a href="https://archive.nepalitimes.com/article/Nepali-Times-Buzz/Narrating-stories-of-nepal,3082">Narrating Nepal</a>, Smriti Basnet Kalo Pothi was a personal story of Bham’s own memories when his friends in school were joining the Maoists, and he heard of the disappearances. A recurring theme in both Kalo Pothi and Shambhala is childhood. “All the characters in my films are reflections of myself,” Bham confesses. “Of course, they’re manipulated for the sake of the narrative, but their essence is drawn from my own childhood when I was very fragile and introverted.” As a boy, instead of playing with children his age, Bham preferred hanging out with older people, listening to their stories: “I missed out on a normal childhood, but had a wonderful one nonetheless.” These early experiences, the memories and nostalgia, became invaluable storytelling tools for cinema, and his PhD in anthropology was an asset as well. “As a filmmaker, it’s essential to grasp the nuances of human behaviour, culture, and politics,” he explains.&nbsp; Before Kalo Pothi, Bham wanted to study political science to get a &nbsp;deeper, holistic understanding of what was happening in Nepali society at the time.&nbsp; But it is with Shambhala that Bham truly comes into his own as a director. "Kalo Pothi was my love letter to my society, and Shambhala is a love letter to my existence,” he says.&nbsp; Shambhala benefits from Bham’s own spiritual journey. He started meditating at age 12, becoming a more serious practitioner by 15. “Through meditation, I began having vivid recurring dreams of a past life as a lama in a monastery in Dolpo,” he says.&nbsp; Read also: <a href="https://nepalitimes.com/review/daughter-of-chomolungma">Daughter of Chomolungma</a>, Pinki Sris Rana He travelled to Dolpo, where the terrain and people matched the dreamscape of the places from his meditation. “It was a surreal moment,” he says. “That’s when I realised I had to make Shambhala, to explore the subconscious and discover what I didn’t know.” When the film was selected for the Berlinale, Bham admits he was not very excited, perhaps because he was confident it was going to go places. In Berlin he did not attend any parties, cancelling all interviews and official meetings.&nbsp; “I wanted to be at peace and simply observe. I didn’t want to get caught up in the networking or the festivities,” he recalls. Though polyandry is a central element of Shambhala, Bham says it only serves as a backdrop to an inner quest into the meaning of existence, femininity and reincarnation. “Dolpo offers such incredible landscape that you can point the camera at anything and it will be stunning,” he says. “But it was not a love story, so I used the mountains as characters themselves.” Read also: <a href="https://nepalitimes.com/review/streaming-the-himalaya-on-film">Streaming the Himalaya on film</a>, Pinki Sris Rana The film’s protagonist is Pema (played by<a href="https://nepalitimes.com/here-now/nepal-s-star-shines-in-locarno"> Thinley Lhamo</a> for which she won the<a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0iCvN6jHVMQ&amp;t=973s"> Boccalino d’Oro Prize for Best Acting Performance at Locarno</a> last month) whose power and freedom challenge patriarchal norms.&nbsp;  <figure> <img src="https://publisher-publish.s3.eu-central-1.amazonaws.com/pb-nepalitimes/swp/asv65r/media/20240912110944_491763c06fc1827cd131157b9b3750c9831ee8252fb1d378769dc800170c7f67.jpg" data-media-id="editor_13" data-image-id="20240912110944_491763c06fc1827cd131157b9b3750c9831ee8252fb1d378769dc800170c7f67" data-rendition-name="original" width="1080" height="719" loading="lazy" alt="Berlin film festival NT"> </figure>  “Pema’s character is a reflection of inner strength and independence, transcending gender,” Bham explains. “As a male director, I also wanted to explore my feminine side to understand it more deeply.”&nbsp; Read also: <a href="http://archive.nepalitimes.com/article/Nepali-Times-Buzz/feminity-to-masculinity,1952">From femininity to masculinity</a>, Bernardo Michael and George Varughese He adds that, in Shambhala the male characters reflect aspects of himself, while Pema represents his feminine side: “Developing the characters, I made sure the male side did not overshadow the feminine side in me.” Bham is researching ideas for his next film which might, for a change, be set in Kathmandu or Angkor Wat to discover his artistic sensibility, irrespective of locale.&nbsp; More than a geographical journey, Min Bahadur Bham is on an artistic voyage deep into his inner being to find the meaning of existence itself. &nbsp; Shambhala is set to release on 13 September in cinemas with Nepali and English subtitles.

Min Bahadur Bham’s cinematic quest

On location in Pokhara

<img src="https://superdesk-pro-c.s3.amazonaws.com/sd-nepalitimes/2022110811114/636a29ac9c7e80680e0458dejpeg.jpg" alt="" width="1500" height="1000"/>Given his multinational background, it was perhaps inevitable that it would be Pema Dhondup would make the first truly global Nepali feature film. Dhondup’s family moved down from Tibet to Jomsom after the Chinese annexation, and from there to Himachal Pradesh and cities across India. He has been living in the United States for the past 15 years.His movie <a href="https://www.imdb.com/title/tt5364878/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">The Man from Kathmandu</a> is shot in Kathmandu and Los Angeles, features a stellar cast of Nepali actors like <a href="https://www.imdb.com/name/nm4542007/?ref_=tt_cl_t8" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Karma</a>, <a href="https://www.imdb.com/name/nm0787463/?ref_=tt_cl_t11" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Neer Shah</a>, <a href="https://www.imdb.com/name/nm1200073/?ref_=tt_cl_t6" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Mithila Sharma</a>, <a href="https://www.imdb.com/name/nm7273293/?ref_=tt_cl_t5" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Anna Sharma</a> and international stars including <a href="https://www.imdb.com/name/nm0004109/?ref_=tt_cl_t1" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Gulshan Grover</a> from India, and other actors from Puerto Rico and Spain."Many people from across the world travel to be a part of the <a href="http://archive.nepalitimes.com/blogs/thebrief/page/87/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">terrorist group ISIS</a>, even educated men from Western countries. But so far not a single one of them has been a Nepali," says Dhondup, “I wanted to explore the story of that one man among thousands. I wanted to find out what is it about Kathmandu that brings about this phenomenon."Read also: <a href="https://www.nepalitimes.com/here-now/animated-in-nepal/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Animated in Nepal</a>, Sikuma RaiTheme of his film is interaction between man and city, how Kathmandu changes the outlook of a radical half-Hindu-half-Muslim protagonist. Terrorism is just the backdrop to the plot, the real story is of a man's journey.To be sure, making Kathmandu the setting for this movie seems unusual, since Dhondhup is not Nepali and does not speak the language. And the film itself seems to be an effort on the part of the director to come to terms with his own identity and the definition of ‘home’."You can say the quest has ended in a way for me, in the form of my American passport. But does that really define who I am?" he asks.<figure><img src="https://superdesk-pro-c.s3.amazonaws.com/sd-nepalitimes/2022110811114/636a29af9c7e80680e0458dfjpeg.jpg" alt="" width="2000" height="1376"><figcaption> </figcaption></figure>We interview Dhondup in the Labim Mall office of the film’s producer Nakim Uddin of QFX. Despite his globe-trotting, the director says Kathmandu was the only city he could have filmed his story in. He has fond memories of Kathmandu from his childhood when he came here to visit family members, and in those days it was as exotic as visiting a foreign country."This is a place where identities and cultures are always in flux. In any other city, you immediately know who is who, what a particular person's origins are. But in Kathmandu, walk down a street and you cannot figure out people. Temples, monasteries, churches and mosques flourish side by side. The city has accepted and absorbed all kinds of identities," he adds.The theme of The Man from Kathmandu actually follows on from Dhondup's earlier movies where he explored the question of identity. His 2004 movie <a href="https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0452541/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">We're No Monks</a> was about a group of Tibetan boys coming out of their secluded existence to face the world. His documentaries have profiled members of the Tibetan diaspora scattered all over the world."It is very hard to make it in American filmdom, and not because of the reason you may be thinking," Dhondhup explains. "Being brown, or of any race, doesn't matter as much as you might expect. But it matters how well you fit into the capitalistic, money machine of Hollywood studios. If you fit, you can make progress. If you don't fit, and you want to experiment you will have a hard time."Still, years of working in Hollywood has given a certain rigour to his work which he feels is necessary for <a href="https://archive.nepalitimes.com/article/Nepali-Times-Buzz/Lights-camera-copy-paste,1146" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Nepali cinema</a> to make it on the global stage. Many Nepali films are still formulaic stories, but Dhondhup says that is not the real problem."No matter what kind of film you make, it has to be up to international technical standards, of sound, visual, editing, otherwise we have everything in Nepal to make world class cinema, from good actors to good equipment. Using these, we can tap into huge market in India and China just next door," he says.Whether or not The Man from Kathmandu will be ‘world cinema from Nepal’ and is of international standard remains to be seen. But Dhondup says it is already global in a sense that it meets technical specifications, and is set to be released in 50 countries after its Nepal premier this week. Dhondup hopes to continue working in Nepali cinema with Nakim Uddin, grooming and helping a new generation of Nepali filmmakers.https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kMvpmY7zfoYThe movie will be in cinemas in Nepal from 15 March.

A director from Kathmandu

India and Pakistan are twins separated at birth. Tensions between them have been at a hair trigger ever since independence and has erupted into full scale conflict at least four times in the past 80 years.
The 22 April terrorist attack in Kashmir that killed 25 Indian tourists and a Nepali citizen, threatens to escalate tension between the two nuclear-armed nations. India has squarely blamed Pakistan for the attacks, and Prime Minister Narendra Modi has given his military “operational freedom” to respond. Pakistan has said it has credible intelligence of an Indian military strike and its officials have promised a “full spectrum” response — a code for a <a href="https://nepalitimes.com/editorial/thinking-the-thinkable">nuclear retaliation</a>.
For Nepal, the killing of its national in the Pahalgam attack comes as another stark reminder that in conflicts from Afghanistan to Iraq, from <a href="https://nepalitimes.com/opinion/how-to-agree-an-armistice-in-ukraine">Ukraine</a> to Israel, <a href="https://nepalitimes.com/news/10-nepalis-from-one-town-fighting-in-ukraine">Nepalis are getting caught in the crossfire</a>. The last time full-scale fighting broke out between <a href="https://nepalitimes.com/opinion/peacemongers-at-india-pakistan-border">India and Pakistan</a> on Kargil in 1999, at least 22<a href="https://nepalitimes.com/here-now/india-s-trial-by-fire-for-soldiers-from-nepal?%27%5C%22="> Nepalis fighting for the Indian Army</a> were killed in action.
Three of Nepal’s immediate neighbours (China, India, Pakistan) have nuclear weapons, and they do not have good relations. With China supplying weapons, <a href="https://nepalitimes.com/editorial/war-and-warming">missile technology</a> and other support to Pakistan, this triangular friction could set off a regional conflagration.&nbsp;
<a href="https://www.nature.com/articles/s43016-022-00573-0" target="_blank">Research at Rutgers University</a> has calculated that even a week-long tactical nuclear exchange between India and Pakistan would throw up so much smoke and debris into the atmosphere that it would block out the sun for years, and lead to a collapse of the <a href="https://nepalitimes.com/news/grow-nourish-sustain-together-world-food-day">global food system</a>. This does not take into account the radioactive fallout that prevailing winds would blow up to <a href="https://nepalitimes.com/here-now/lives-on-the-line-in-the-himalaya">the Himalaya</a>, contaminating glaciers that are the sources of <a href="https://nepalitimes.com/here-now/saving-what-is-left-of-himalayan-rivers">Asia’s main rivers</a>.
The impact of <a href="https://nepalitimes.com/news/climate-breakdown-linked-to-thame-flood">climate breakdown </a>on High Asia was already ringing alarm bells about its <a href="https://nepalitimes.com/news/himalayan-icecap-melting-faster-than-thought">shrinking ice cap</a> reducing the dry season flow of water downstream. Water was going to be the next strategic commodity, geopolitical experts warned, and the next wars in Asia would be over water.
That water war is already happening. India retaliated to the Kashmir attack by suspending the <a href="https://www.nytimes.com/2025/04/24/world/asia/india-pakistan-indus-waters-treaty.html" target="_blank">Indus Waters Treaty</a> of 1960 mediated by the World Bank that has withstood at least three wars between India and Pakistan. The treaty gives India control over the three eastern tributaries of the Indus (<a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Beas_River" target="_blank">Beas</a>, <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ravi_River" target="_blank">Ravi</a> and <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sutlej" target="_blank">Sutlej</a>), while Pakistan got water from the Indus and two of its western tributaries (<a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Indus_River" target="_blank">Indus</a>, <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Chenab_River" target="_blank">Chenab</a> and <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jhelum_River" target="_blank">Jhelum</a>.
Pakistan was assured of 70% of the annual flow, and India could use a reasonable amount of water for<a href="https://archive.nepalitimes.com/news.php?id=15231"> irrigation and hydropower</a>. &nbsp;Within days of its threat, India stopped water flowing down to Pakistan from the Chenab river and is reportedly preparing to do the same on the Jhelum.
The sabre-rattling has reached a crescendo. Besides threats and counter-threats there are also symbolic drills, with the Indian Air Force practicing landing on an expressway in Uttar Pradesh by its Rafale, Su-30 and Jaguar fighter jets to demonstrate ‘operational readiness’. In response Pakistan test-fired its Abdali ballistic missile that can carry a nuclear warhead and has a range of 450km.&nbsp;
The danger is that with ultra-nationalist rhetoric and the beating the war drums by both sides, India’s government and Pakistan’s military may have to ‘do something’ to appease domestic public opinion. But any tactical strike, an artillery exchange, or territorial incursion could quickly escalate out of control.
Expecting an Indian retaliation for the Pahalgam killings, Pakistan is using<a href="https://nepalitimes.com/opinion/interfaith-collaboration-for-nuclear-disarmament"> nuclear deterrence </a>and warning of “catastrophic consequences”. The two neighbours came close to a nuclear exchange in 2019 after an attack on the Indian military in Kashmir, and prompt international intervention led by the United States cooled tensions.&nbsp;
This time, the <a href="https://nepalitimes.com/news/trump-shock-wave-hits-nepal">Trump administration</a> is too distracted and not as engaged. Pakistan has denied it was responsible for the terrorist attack and called on Washington to stop a possible Indian retaliation. India and Pakistan have stopped overflights by each other’s airlines, and some international carriers have even stopped flying over Pakistan fearing an air war.
Washington, Beijing, the UN and the EU have all urged restraint. Iran, which has good relations with both India and Pakistan has sent its foreign minister to urge both countries not to go into a tit-for-tat war. Iran has its own nuclear flashpoint to worry about with tensions in Israel, &nbsp;Yemen and Syria.
India and Pakistan both share similar problems of joblessness, <a href="https://nepalitimes.com/here-now/why-nepal-s-poverty-rate-is-stuck">poverty </a>and <a href="https://nepalitimes.com/here-now/climate-change-new-threat-to-nepal-s-rhinos">environmental threats</a>. Neither side needs the threat of a senseless war, and we in the neighbourhood do not need it either.&nbsp;
Kunda Dixit
This Editorial is brought to you by <a href="https://nepalitimes.com/" target="_blank">Nepali Times</a>, in collaboration with <a href="https://inpsjapan.com/en/" target="_blank">INPS Japan</a> and <a href="https://sgi-peace.org/" target="_blank">Soka Gakkai International</a>, in consultative status with UN ECOSOC.

Nukes in the neighbourhood

The streets of Patan are alive this month with lavender jacaranda trees under rain-washed skies as <a href="https://nepalitimes.com/banner/the-red-god-rises-again-in-patan">the chariot of Rato Matsyendranath</a> is pulled across town. This is the festival of the rain god, and inevitably the heavens opened up and pre-monsoon showers pelted the chariot as it started being pulled in Pulchok last week. Thousands of devotees, onlookers and the chariot procession organisers thronged the streets on the first day last week. The rhythmic cymbals and drums exuded a vibrant energy as the enormous four wheels turned and the chariot lurched.&nbsp;  <figure> <img src="https://publisher-publish.s3.eu-central-1.amazonaws.com/pb-nepalitimes/swp/asv65r/media/2025051007050_81df97744db16f732a419dc1f1579d235ce3df37642b078f50b83bd4bd026688.jpg" data-media-id="editor_1" data-image-id="2025051007050_81df97744db16f732a419dc1f1579d235ce3df37642b078f50b83bd4bd026688" data-rendition-name="original" width="1000" height="1503" loading="lazy" alt="Divine chariot"> </figure>  The<a href="https://archive.nepalitimes.com/article/Nepali-Times-Buzz/Red-rain-god,3141"> red rain god</a> has Hindu and Buddhist antecedents, alternatively called Bungadya and<a href="https://nepalitimes.com/here-now/kathmandu-s-gravity-defying-chariot-festival"> Karunamaya</a> — reflecting Kathmandu Valley’s syncretic mixture of the two religions.&nbsp; “Bungadya is a profoundly <a href="https://nepalitimes.com/opinion/12-full-opinion/marketing-the-intangible">intangible form of heritage</a>,” explains heritage expert Monalisa Maharjan. “It embodies traditional knowledge,<a href="https://nepalitimes.com/multimedia/reviving-nepal-s-craft"> artisanal skills passed down through generations</a>. Local communities and specific families have specified roles in being custodians of the heritage, ensuring their survival over the centuries.” There are many legends and stories about this annual tradition. Lichhavi king Narendra Dev is supposed to have brought Rato Matsyendranath from Assam to Kathmandu Valley to convince Guru Gorakhnath to lift a spell that created a two-year drought in Kathmandu.  <figure> <img src="https://publisher-publish.s3.eu-central-1.amazonaws.com/pb-nepalitimes/swp/asv65r/media/20250510050520_347a9a398f8a9abc4a7fb4e2774fde8264cccbdce8bdab23851ab3f0e73c3e8a.jpg" data-media-id="editor_6" data-image-id="20250510050520_347a9a398f8a9abc4a7fb4e2774fde8264cccbdce8bdab23851ab3f0e73c3e8a" data-rendition-name="original" width="1503" height="1000" loading="lazy" alt="Divine chariot"> </figure>  Matsyendranath was Gorakhnath’s mentor, and upon seeing him, the serpents were released, unleashing the rains. The chariot festival honours the return of this life-giving rain. The deity is seen as an icon for thriving agriculture, t<a href="https://nepalitimes.com/here-now/before-the-next-monsoon">he arrival of monsoon</a> showers, and the welfare of the community. Read also: <a href="https://nepalitimes.com/opinion/the-reign-of-the-god-of-rain">The reign of the god of rain</a>, Vidhu Prakash Kayastha Till this day, the Rato Matsyendranath festival is no ordinary celebration. Patan does not sleep for a month as the chariot is pulled through various neighbourhoods. It unfolds at a state level with the president (formerly the king) attending the climax of the Bhoto Jatra in Jawalakhel later this month.&nbsp; The intergenerational transmission of tradition is unique in the world, and the reason the festival is one of the most vibrant cultural expressions that thrives despite inroads of modernity. The other unique aspect is that it is a transnational festival, binding Patan with Guwahati in the Indian state of Assam.  <figure> <img src="https://publisher-publish.s3.eu-central-1.amazonaws.com/pb-nepalitimes/swp/asv65r/media/2025051005058_8bc685ada13045d863b28e3eed91c931da2b510714586af6fd7eb5d1e298a24a.jpg" data-media-id="editor_9" data-image-id="2025051005058_8bc685ada13045d863b28e3eed91c931da2b510714586af6fd7eb5d1e298a24a" data-rendition-name="original" width="1000" height="1503" loading="lazy" alt="Divine chariot"> </figure>  “Unlike Nepal, where the deity commands grandeur and devotion, many in Assam are unaware of Rato Matsyendranath,” says Khagen Sharma of Gauhati University, which convened <a href="https://nepalitimes.com/news/nepal-assam-connection-revived">a symposium in February in Guwahati on the rain god</a>. Attending was a delegation led by Lalitpur Mayor Chiribabu Maharjan, organisers of the festival, and builders of the chariot. After the symposium, a committee was formed to explore and revive the tradition in Assam as well. Although the team had planned to visit Nepal this month, logistical challenges delayed the trip. Still, there are plans to build a Guru Matsyendranath statue in Assam to reestablish regular worship practices in the Guwahati shrine.&nbsp; The vines used to build the chariot in Patan are sourced from the jungles of Assam. But Sharma notes that in recent years unclear regulations have blocked the official import of the vines, although they are still brought to Nepal informally. The <a href="https://archive.nepalitimes.com/article/Nepali-Times-Buzz/makers-of-machhindranath,2204">chariot making</a> has also had a taste of modernisation in recent times. In the past, even a single nail or piece of steel was avoided. But over time, the wooden structure, particularly the shaft between the wheels, has been replaced with bronze. When that too proved unstable, metal clamps were introduced, which have become a pragmatic compromise.&nbsp;  <figure> <img src="https://publisher-publish.s3.eu-central-1.amazonaws.com/pb-nepalitimes/swp/asv65r/media/20250510050524_b2a819a5791612f14c81d30fc393dbd3f99f0c64b90a9110e8b0855d944bfa93.jpg" data-media-id="editor_12" data-image-id="20250510050524_b2a819a5791612f14c81d30fc393dbd3f99f0c64b90a9110e8b0855d944bfa93" data-rendition-name="original" width="1500" height="998" loading="lazy" alt="Divine chariot"> </figure>  Another welcome change is the focus on safety. Builders climbing the chariot’s tower now wear harnesses and there are efforts in crowd control. The most visible change in recent years has been the involvement of Patan’s enthusiastic youth in the festival — the tradition is now passing to a new generation. Says Matsyendranath expert Vidhu Kayastha: “There is more energy, the young people in red t-shirts this year were very organised, these modern touches aren’t diluting our culture, they’re keeping it alive in new forms.” He adds, “We are <a href="https://nepalitimes.com/here-now/searching-for-a-homeland-away-from-home">reconnecting with our roots</a>, we have more resources, more awareness than ever before. We must not be swept away by western values that may not serve us, and in some ways, cause more harm than good. We must revive our own culture.”&nbsp;

Divine chariot

This is the 67th episode of Diaspora Diaries, a Nepali Times series in collaboration with Migration Lab providing a platform to share experiences of living, working, and studying abroad. <h2>Alpana Adhikari, UK</h2> Back in Nepal, I had worked as a nurse for a decade, but I had my heart set to go overseas. My reason for wanting to migrate, however, was a bit different as it was for my son. He has a disability, and considering his situation from multiple perspectives—including societal attitudes, the preparedness of schools, and the availability of facilities for individuals with his condition—Nepal did not feel safe for my baby.&nbsp; I had to migrate, no matter what, for his sake. The facilities here in the UK for children with his condition are significantly better, and I am glad he and my husband will join me in a few months.&nbsp; I was applying via private routes like everyone else when the Government to Government pilot program between Britain and Nepal was announced. Even though the initial program targeted 100 nurses, only 40 of us were able to meet the criteria.&nbsp;  <figure> <img src="https://publisher-publish.s3.eu-central-1.amazonaws.com/pb-nepalitimes/swp/asv65r/media/20250511160536_46f6a3c05fd2d9bdac06a9a478f49079c2c69c783fcf0cc58b75da6128319745.jpg" data-media-id="editor_0" data-image-id="20250511160536_46f6a3c05fd2d9bdac06a9a478f49079c2c69c783fcf0cc58b75da6128319745" data-rendition-name="original" width="720" height="1280" loading="lazy" alt="DD 67"> <figcaption>Alpana Adhikari started working as a nurse in a hospital in the UK in March.</figcaption> </figure>  I made it to the UK &nbsp;in February 2024 without paying a single paisa to any broker. The G2G scheme was unique as we were treated with dignity and valued for our skills: they covered costs for the ticket and visa, reimbursed us for exams we had taken and costs involved in the preparation and testing of the Objective Structured Clinical Examination were also covered.&nbsp; I started work in March last year, and currently am based in the respiratory ward of a hospital. I am enjoying my work a lot. In one year, I have received 26 WOW nominations which are notes of appreciation from patients we have served. ‘Alpana is one of the kindest nurses I have seen. Awesome and talented … always smiling, never appears tired and helps everyone,’ one patient testimonial said. Another: ‘You can see clearly that she cares about her patients…She was cool amidst great stress and ALWAYS with a smile which gave me confidence.’ I am also the International Educated Nurses Advocate which means I can raise issues with management about issues facing international nurses here.&nbsp;  <figure> <img src="https://publisher-publish.s3.eu-central-1.amazonaws.com/pb-nepalitimes/swp/asv65r/media/20250511160536_87b959c7550bbd1272ebf840d9f24735db008307ad825e4aa15e66c1662a7fd4.jpg" data-media-id="editor_1" data-image-id="20250511160536_87b959c7550bbd1272ebf840d9f24735db008307ad825e4aa15e66c1662a7fd4" data-rendition-name="original" width="1590" height="1600" loading="lazy" alt="DD 67"> <figcaption>One reason Alpana Adhikari migrated to the UK was so there would be better facilities for her son, who has a disability. </figcaption> </figure>  Recruitment from NHS linked hospitals is free but when we migrate through private routes, agencies either charge upfront costs or in some cases, there is wage deduction once the nurses start earning.&nbsp; I have met Nepalis who have paid up to Rs 1 million for the same job. These costs can go even as high as Rs3 million for work in caregiving or nursing homes. I am lucky not to have to pay anyone for my posting.&nbsp; But beyond costs, I think there is also a reputational advantage of coming through the government selection process at the hospital. Such programs need to be expanded more because nurses are migrating anyway and it would save people a lot of unnecessary costs and hassles. I will always be protective about Nepal and am grateful for the experience I gained, but it is true that nurses lack dignity in the workplace back home. Nursing is laborious work and completing the education takes a fortune but the pay for nurses in Nepal, other than at a handful of hospitals, is unfairly low.&nbsp;  <figure> <img src="https://publisher-publish.s3.eu-central-1.amazonaws.com/pb-nepalitimes/swp/asv65r/media/20250511160540_2a483361070e6e65413cf3bcf3be7af0581044f85c3e6da25a66dc87042af9d9.jpg" data-media-id="editor_2" data-image-id="20250511160540_2a483361070e6e65413cf3bcf3be7af0581044f85c3e6da25a66dc87042af9d9" data-rendition-name="original" width="2048" height="1536" loading="lazy" alt="DD 67"> <figcaption>Alpana Adhikari while working as a nurse in Nepal.</figcaption> </figure>  It naturally makes nurses want to migrate. People often ask me what the difference in the UK and Nepal is. Work is similar but in terms of technology, there is less paperwork here as everything is digitised. Treatment is also more nurse-led and we have more say while making recommendations about medicine and discharging decisions which can be empowering. I am not sure what it is about nursing but I am always in high spirits and energetic about showing up to work every day. To be a good nurse, you have to have the passion for patient care.&nbsp; Sometimes people tell me it is because my family has not yet joined me which has freed up my time to singularly focus on work, but I do not believe that is true. Back home, too, I used to be as passionate about my job.&nbsp;  <figure> <img src="https://publisher-publish.s3.eu-central-1.amazonaws.com/pb-nepalitimes/swp/asv65r/media/20250511160540_47851c2c850c936b7bfb23da0f0e8a07620ea213ad929c229b6cca8711adc5d4.jpg" data-media-id="editor_3" data-image-id="20250511160540_47851c2c850c936b7bfb23da0f0e8a07620ea213ad929c229b6cca8711adc5d4" data-rendition-name="original" width="1024" height="768" loading="lazy" alt="DD 67"> <figcaption>Alpana Adhikari (left) during an International Nurses Day rally in Kathmandu.</figcaption> </figure>  What fuels my passion here is the appreciation we get. It is not just about the income. Sometimes after long hours at work when it has been a particularly busy day, a phone message from my manager and colleagues appreciating me for a job well done can go a long way.&nbsp; Likewise, the WOW recommendations from my patients have boosted my confidence. One of my elderly patients who had a mental illness and I bonded, and she felt comfortable enough to open up with me. She would then refer to me as her friend with everyone.&nbsp; It is little things like this that can make a big difference. Perhaps that is why my flat mate and colleagues often question why I don’t look tired even after a long shift. <h2>Binu Gurung, Japan</h2> It has been five-and-half years since I came to Japan under the Specified Skilled Workers (SSW) visa in the nursing category. I had previously come to Japan as a language student as well.&nbsp; I grew up in Ghandruk and had just started my Bachelor’s course when a friend suggested we try to go to Japan so I just followed the trend and stayed here for three years as a student.&nbsp; Two years after returning to Nepal, I re-migrated to Japan under the SSW scheme which was at its early stages and only open to nursing initially.&nbsp;  <figure> <img src="https://publisher-publish.s3.eu-central-1.amazonaws.com/pb-nepalitimes/swp/asv65r/media/20250511160536_305bb5cb5095da6148911dae8b07356ece5b292148e6c8e57a39fd31d811624b.jpg" data-media-id="editor_4" data-image-id="20250511160536_305bb5cb5095da6148911dae8b07356ece5b292148e6c8e57a39fd31d811624b" data-rendition-name="original" width="720" height="960" loading="lazy" alt="DD 67"> <figcaption>Binu Gurung on arrival in Japan to work as a nurse three years ago.</figcaption> </figure>  I take care of the elderly Japanese who are mostly above 80 years of age, a few even above 100. I try not to get too attached to patients but it is of course not always easy because of the nature of the job and patients we serve.&nbsp; Patients dying of age is common as it is not a care facility where patients recover to return to their homes. Just recently, an elderly lady who had been here from the day I joined 5.5 years ago passed.&nbsp; These leave you a bit खिन्न and emotionally drained. Most are dementia patients who do not &nbsp;even recognise their family members. Some elderly patients are reserved and do not feel comfortable as the work entails helping with personal care tasks like using the toilet or bathing and they can be irritable.&nbsp;  <figure> <img src="https://publisher-publish.s3.eu-central-1.amazonaws.com/pb-nepalitimes/swp/asv65r/media/20250511160536_c840a0b12c20c3d52d9eceec06a0bc8c90208f13e402c50f319583b1c1a93b87.jpg" data-media-id="editor_5" data-image-id="20250511160536_c840a0b12c20c3d52d9eceec06a0bc8c90208f13e402c50f319583b1c1a93b87" data-rendition-name="original" width="694" height="960" loading="lazy" alt="DD 67"> <figcaption>Binu Gurung's work involves taking care of elderly Japanese.</figcaption> </figure>  Building trust and rapport takes time, patience and familiarity. I do not think there is a way to explain how happy I feel when they are happy with the care we provide and thank us in smiles like we are their own family members.&nbsp; My own grandmother back in Nepal was in a similar situation requiring care before she passed and I am able to extend that kind of care to many patients.  <figure> <img src="https://publisher-publish.s3.eu-central-1.amazonaws.com/pb-nepalitimes/swp/asv65r/media/20250511160536_0f41ad57ae1ac5bd2f406d86cdc5f542b613cef6961d8fdf20c883ee38404b5e.jpg" data-media-id="editor_6" data-image-id="20250511160536_0f41ad57ae1ac5bd2f406d86cdc5f542b613cef6961d8fdf20c883ee38404b5e" data-rendition-name="original" width="1600" height="1067" loading="lazy" alt="DD 67"> <figcaption>Binu Gurung in Yokohama.</figcaption> </figure>  I know that this job is not for everyone. That is why some nurses who come to Japan because they want to just migrate overseas at any cost without considering the kind of employment realise that caregiving might not be for them.&nbsp; You have to be mentally, physically and emotionally prepared for it. If you are short-tempered by nature, for example, it may not be the best fit. However, for those who are genuinely interested in care work like I am, there are many growth opportunities in nursing which are also financially rewarding.&nbsp; While working under the SSW visa, I was able to take training classes on the side and passed the national exam for nursing. I was then able to change my visa from SSW to nursing caregiver visa. My son joined my husband and I recently in Japan and has started school.

Nepali nurses caring for the world

In 2025, two seemingly disconnected acts of violence shattered the illusion of stability in the region. In March, <a href="https://www.ft.com/content/16f7f947-1e96-4206-9844-891378adc683" target="_blank">militants hijacked a passenger train</a> near the Bolan Pass in Balochistan, executing soldiers in cold blood. A month later, <a href="https://www.nytimes.com/2025/04/22/world/asia/kashmir-terrorist-attack.html" target="_blank">gunmen in Kashmir’s</a> Pahalgam Valley massacred tourists. 
In both Islamabad and New Delhi, <a href="https://www.aljazeera.com/news/2025/4/25/were-cursed-kashmiris-under-attack-across-india-after-pahalgam-killings" target="_blank">the reaction was reflexive:</a> condemn the violence, <a href="https://www.economist.com/asia/2025/04/22/india-and-pakistan-could-come-to-blows-over-kashmir" target="_blank">blame external enemies</a>, declare the situation contained. But South Asia’s leaders are not fighting terrorists alone. They are fighting the consequences of their own betrayals.
Across <a href="https://www.bbc.com/news/world-asia-26272897" target="_blank">Balochistan</a>, <a href="https://www.bbc.com/news/world-south-asia-11693674" target="_blank">Kashmir</a>, <a href="https://www.crisisgroup.org/asia/south-asia/india/346-finding-way-out-festering-conflict-indias-manipur" target="_blank">Manipur</a>, and beyond, decades of <a href="https://www.amnesty.org/en/projects/enforced-disappearance-in-south-asia/" target="_blank">enforced disappearances</a>, broken promises, and brute militarisation have hollowed out the social contracts meant to hold these nations together. The grievances that drove rebellions from the 1940s through the 1990s – demands for dignity, recognition, and political agency – were never meaningfully addressed. They were buried beneath asphalt and propaganda, paved over by development projects and security checkpoints.
States may claim victory. But their victories are mirages, dissolving the moment anyone looks too closely. South Asia’s unfinished wars are not relics of a violent past. They are live ammunition, loaded into the future.
<a href="https://www.theguardian.com/world/2025/mar/24/he-only-wanted-revenge-the-bloody-insurgency-in-balochistan-gaining-lethal-momentum" target="_blank">Balochistan</a> has been at war with Pakistan for most of its modern history. Rich in gas, minerals, and coastline, the province has been plundered for decades under the language of national development. 
Projects like the <a href="https://eastasiaforum.org/2020/11/26/pakistans-three-evils-cpec-and-good-governance/" target="_blank">China-Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC)</a> promise progress but deliver exclusion: minerals are mined, ports are secured, but Baloch homes are raided. 
The insurgency endures not because of foreign conspiracies, as Islamabad endlessly insists, but because the Pakistani state remains incapable of seeing its <a href="https://thebalochistanpost.net/2025/01/enforced-disappearances-in-balochistan-in-december-2024-tbp-report/" target="_blank">Baloch citizens</a> as anything other than a security problem to be managed.
In <a href="https://www.forbes.com/sites/ranisingh/2016/07/12/kashmir-in-the-worlds-most-militarized-zone-violence-after-years-of-comparative-calm/" target="_blank">Kashmir</a>, the Indian government claims to have <a href="https://www.nytimes.com/2023/03/08/world/asia/kashmir-village-defense-committees.html" target="_blank">“normalised” the valley</a> after revoking its autonomy in 2019. It <a href="https://www.cfr.org/global-conflict-tracker/conflict/conflict-between-india-and-pakistan" target="_blank">looks a lot like occupation</a>. Soldiers outnumber local leaders, dissent is criminalised, internet shutdowns suffocate public life. Tourism campaigns and investment summits cannot erase a generation raised under curfew and surveillance.
<a href="https://www.bbc.com/news/world-asia-india-66260730" target="_blank">Manipur’s descent into ethnic bloodshed</a> in 2023 exposed another fault line Delhi prefers to ignore. Long-simmering tensions between the Meitei and Kuki communities erupted into violence that shattered any illusions of northeastern integration. The central government’s delayed, politicised response made clear what many Manipuris had always suspected: they are citizens of India only when convenient.
Even the <a href="https://msf.org.au/rohingya-worlds-largest-stateless-population" target="_blank">Rohingya, stateless and exiled from Myanmar</a>, find themselves entangled in South Asia’s ethnonationalist calculus. Fleeing genocide, they are criminalised anew in Bangladesh and India – trapped between the countries that reject them and the memories that refuse to let them go.
South Asia’s states have excelled at suppressing rebellion. But failed at extinguishing the reasons rebellions rise in the first place. And the wars South Asia tries to forget at home have found new life abroad.
Across <a href="https://www.abc.net.au/news/2024-06-17/modis-indian-government-accused-of-spying-silencing-critics/103974414" target="_blank">Canada, Australia, Britain, and the United States</a>, diasporic communities have become memory-keepers and, increasingly, <a href="https://www.business-standard.com/world-news/khalistan-supporters-hold-protest-outside-indian-consulate-in-vancouver-123092600087_1.html" target="_blank">the agitators</a> for the struggles their home states would rather erase.
Khalistan flags fly outside Indian consulates in Vancouver and <a href="https://www.tribuneindia.com/news/punjab/perturbed-over-waving-of-khalistani-flags-at-an-event-in-melbourne-india-warns-australia-of-khalistan-separatists-and-their-links-with-terror-groups-458320/" target="_blank">Melbourne</a>. Tamil activists march through London, demanding accountability for the <a href="https://www.aljazeera.com/news/2024/5/19/grim-reminder-sri-lankas-tamils-mark-15-years-since-end-of-civil-war" target="_blank">massacres in Mullivaikkal</a>. Kashmiri protests in Washington and New York refuse to let India’s crackdown slip into diplomatic amnesia.
For host countries, these movements pose uncomfortable questions. Freedom of expression collides with fears of extremism. Clashes erupt between communities carrying wounds that their new homelands.
Meanwhile, South Asian states pursue their adversaries across borders. India faces allegations of <a href="https://www.nbcnews.com/news/world/canada-says-india-home-minister-ordered-campaign-against-sikh-activist-rcna177972" target="_blank">targeting Sikh activists for assassination in Canada</a> and the <a href="https://www.npr.org/2024/10/27/g-s1-29561/sikh-separatist-assassination-india" target="_blank">United States</a>. Pakistan continues to court Kashmiri separatists abroad while crushing Baloch dissent at home. <a href="https://apnews.com/article/sri-lanka-tamils-civil-war-dead-5b372b0bba567837c5a4d94250040e7d" target="_blank">Sri Lanka</a> lobbies furiously to brand Tamil diaspora organisations as fronts for terrorism, even as it stonewalls investigations into its own wartime atrocities.
The old insurgencies have not been defeated. They have been globalised. South Asia’s governments have long mistaken silence for stability.
In Punjab, India broke the back of the <a href="https://www.cnn.com/2023/10/06/india/india-canada-sikh-khalistan-analysis-intl-hnk/index.html" target="_blank">Khalistan insurgency</a> through brute force. The fields grew green again, the trains ran on time. But the wounds were never closed, the <a href="https://www.dw.com/en/why-is-indias-khalistan-separatist-movement-on-the-rise/a-65081729" target="_blank">movement’s heart beats</a> not in Amritsar but in Brampton and Surrey.
In Sri Lanka, the <a href="https://www.academia.edu/4738983/The_Man_Who_Destroyed_Eelam" target="_blank">military crushed the Tamil Tigers</a> with <a href="https://www.newyorker.com/magazine/2011/01/17/death-of-the-tiger" target="_blank">overwhelming brutality in 2009</a>. <a href="https://www.scmp.com/week-asia/politics/article/3264148/we-want-our-children-back-sri-lankan-families-still-demanding-justice-their-missing-loved-ones" target="_blank">Tamil families still search for their missing</a>, still mourn their dead – and still organise across the diaspora for justice that remains undelivered.
In Kashmir, Delhi boasts of new <a href="https://www.aljazeera.com/opinions/2023/2/4/kashmir-is-bleeding-its-economy" target="_blank">highways and investment corridors</a>, showcasing the region as a trophy of unity. But when the visitors leave and the cameras are packed away, <a href="https://harvardlawreview.org/print/vol-134/from-domicile-to-dominion-indias-settler-colonial-agenda-in-kashmir/" target="_blank">the checkpoints, the raids, and the quiet despair remain.</a>
Victory parades fade. Grievance endures. Suppressing insurgency may end battles. It does not end the ideas that fueled them. In a region where <a href="https://www.nytimes.com/2025/04/23/world/asia/kashmir-attack-india-pakistan.html" target="_blank">history is rarely past</a>, and memory is rarely voluntary, states that rule through repression are only ever buying time. And often, not very much.
South Asia’s unfinished wars are not accidents. They are the inevitable consequences of states that confuse conquest with consent, and erasure with reconciliation. They cannot legislate memory out of existence.
Every <a href="https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/c15qyyzz89lo" target="_blank">disappeared son in Balochistan</a>, every <a href="https://medium.com/the-wvoice/the-half-widows-in-kashmir-fef80c6b88e9" target="_blank">half-widow in Kashmir</a>, every <a href="https://www.doctorswithoutborders.org/what-we-do/focus/rohingya-refugee-crisis" target="_blank">refugee child born stateless in a Rohingya camp</a> carries forward the memory of betrayal – a memory that outlives soldiers, politicians, and peace accords alike.
The region’s future will not be decided by GDP figures or infrastructure projects alone. It will be decided by whether its governments can summon the political courage to face the truths they have long suppressed – or whether they will continue down a path <a href="https://theconversation.com/india-is-using-the-g20-summit-to-further-its-settler-colonial-ambitions-in-kashmir-205166" target="_blank">where forgetting is demanded</a>, and rebellion becomes inevitable.
Shyam Tekwani is a professor at the Daniel K. Inouye Asia-Pacific Center for Security Studies in Hawaii. This <a href="https://dkiapcss.edu/nexus_articles/ghosts-at-the-border-south-asias-unfinished-wars/" target="_blank">article</a> was originally published on <a href="https://dkiapcss.edu/security-nexus/" target="_blank">DKI APCSS Security Nexus.</a> The views expressed in this article are those of the author and do not reflect the official policy or position of DKI APCSS, the Department of Defense, or the US Government. The appearance of external hyperlinks does not constitute endorsement by the United States Department of Defense (DoD) of the linked websites, or the information, products, or services contained therein. DoD does not exercise any editorial, security, or other control over the information you may find at these sites.

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