Different Dasain
Nepali Times ईspecial 26 September - 9 October 2025 #1280
Happy दशैँ to those who celebrate it.
This pre-Dasain edition of Nepali Times is a Book Special with reviews:
Shristi Karki read Amanda Thérèse Snellinger’s book Making New Nepal: From Student Activism to Mainstream Politics, which researched student unions that became proxies for discredited political parties. This makes the GenZ youth revolt different than previous popular movements (Nepal’s Historic Youth Dissensus, page 4-5).
Slavery and Unfree Labour in Nepal: Documents from the 18th to Early 20st Century (Edited by Manik Bajracharya) is reviewed by Sudiksha Tuladhar on page 9. It seems to take more than laws to address entrenched injustices.
A Reader for Kathmandu edited by Benjamin Linder is reviewed by Kshitiz Pratap Shah on page 10. It is a compendium of the many facets of our home Valley.
Reimagining Development: Bold Directions toward a Thriving World by Peter Sutoris and Uma Pradhan charts a possible new path to make development more responsive to local needs (Deconstruction Development in an Age of Crises, page 10-11).
The recent release of Gopal Yonjan: The Man & His Music by Renchin Yonjan was prescient because many of the songs of this iconic musician could have been anthems for the GenZ movement (Gopal Yonjan’s Immortal Songs, page 10-11, also reviewed by me).
This issue of Nepali Times carried Guest Editorials by three GenZ activists:
GenZ Constitutional Awakening by Sambriddhi Aryal
The Nepal Our Friends Died For by Niharika Sah
Democracy’s New Dawn by Tanuja Pandey
And Special Correspondent Shristi Karki asks if out-of-country voting is possible in the March elections for Nepal’s expatriates. The consensus seems to be: it will be difficult (March to 5 March, page 1).
British tourist Harry Jackson became an accidental journalist after he started posting videos of the 8-9 September protests, and some say he did a better job than the mainstream media. Vishad raj Onta profiles Jackson (The Accidental Journalist, page 3).
One thing we will look forward is the annual Jazzmandu Festival, which this year is on 9-15 October. Nepali Times is proud to have partnered with the festival for its past 23 years. Concerts line-up on page 6-7, and schedule of performances on page 8.
Lastly, Lisa Choegyal recounts the visit by Robert Redford to Nepal in 1992 in her tribute to the great Hollywood actor, social and environmental activist (The Sundance Kid in Nepal, page 12).
With the holiday season around the corner, this may be a good time to remind ourselves about how lucky we are to be living in Nepal at this time in the country’s history and geography.
That is because Nepal has the most per capita holidays on Earth. Name me one country that has days off for five different New Years.
[Oh. Before I forget, Nepali Times is taking a holiday break, so no newsletter next week. The next e-Special newsletter in your inbox will be on Sunday, 12 October.]
This year’s Dasain celebrations are somewhat somber because of recent happenings. But also because landslides have blocked roads outbound from Kathmandu, and many are not bothering to travel. The two highways linking Nepal to China are also blocked by floods and mudslides, so hundreds of containers with consumer items are stuck at the two border checkpoints with China.
This means no import of mountain goats from Tibet for this festive season. As we all know, goats from Nepal’s northern and southern neighbours sacrifice their lives this time of year to preserve Nepal’s martial traditions that gave us the stamina to fight off invaders.
Studies have shown that 80% of an average Nepali’s meat intake is during this festival. It must be the same with alcohol. So the ungulate deficit this Dasain is a national crisis.
This year we may have to do Dasain differently by:
Turning vegetarian. This is not difficult, just drop by at the Goat, Buffalo and Poultry Concentration Camp at Balkhu.
Be selective, don’t visit relatives you don’t like.
Go to Goa. Better still, emigrate.
Don’t take it literally if someone tells you to “go fly a kite”.
Fly drones instead.
Have a safe and relaxing break.
Kunda Dixit