Democracy is…

After a prolonged absence from the blogoshpere I have finally come across something sensible to blog about. A Facebook ‘contact’ had this video uploaded in his page and after watching it I thought I might as well contribute something by advertising it here . ( Ahem!) Not ‘Only’ because it is ‘from Nepal’ but because it is ‘Good’ stuff from Nepal. Well, this is Tsering Choden’s entry from KTM, Nepal for the Democracy Video Challenge. The list of the finalists is here. And if you go through the credits of the Video you’ll see a lot of names you’re familiar with ( If you are a Hits FM listener). Tsering Choden herself is an RJ at HITS FM. I still listen to her on “Namaste Kathmandu”( The breakfast show you can almost eat!) Yanik used to run a program called ‘The Peace Train’ ( I think a new RJ does the show now). Bipra runs Nepali and English shows alike. Srijan is the Audio guy with a real good voice ( I remember talking to him on the phone a long time back…when I was younger and used to call the station as an enthusiastic listener!).There was a time when Pravat used to run a lot of shows on Hits FM. I don’t hear him these days. But the video in question isn’t about who they are it is ‘what’ they have come out with.

If you are a Kathmanduite who is ’still’ in KTM as opposed to the millions who aren’t physically present here but spread out all over the ‘web world’ in ‘Nepali youths Do something’ kind of FBgroups ( Sorry, I loathe them!) and wake up every morning to read the news of ‘frequent’ strikes by ‘Okharpauwa’ landfill site people, never-ending ‘Points of Agreement’ between this group and that group including Kathmandu Metropolitan City and Okharpauwa Sangarsha Samiti ( or whatever),leave for work every morning past the stinking garbage, stopped midway on your way to work because ‘Congress/Ma-ley/ Ye-maley/ Maobadi/Yekikrit Maobadi’ ( choose one) is ‘Sangharsharat’ (protesting), forced to leave home two hours for your exams because the city is ‘tanabgrasta’ and yet get stranded in the middle of nowhere among ‘ Maobadis rallying for Nagarik Sarwochata (People’s Supremacy!) and have the term ‘indiscriminate firing’ come to your mind while making your path through the Red Sea, come home to ‘Load-shedding’ and still wake up every morning hoping for a better day then you like me will thoroughly enjoy the video.

The definition of democracy by commoners and people’s representative like Gagan Thapa alike, the music, the rap is all beautifully done. It just captures ‘Nepali democracy’ and yet defies the ‘Nepali label’. It is a tale of all new and emerging democracies. I especially liked the line in the video which says’ The Warriors have come home but it still feels like War’ but that doesn’t depress me! I think we are going through what France went through during the French Revolution or USA during the American Revolution. Its Renaissance time in Nepal. Though because of the point of time we are in ( i.e the 21st century) life is harder for us and our level of frustrations, aspirations and expectations is higher too. Obviously because, Europe and America during their ‘rebirth’ had relatively lesser ‘issues’ to deal with. They were not tormented by ‘ द्वैध सत्ता, असंवैधानिक कदम, पाकेको आँप झर्छ वा झर्दैन, घ्यू पच्छ वा पच्दैन , को भाले भएपछि के गर्ने , कालोमोसो, गाउँ छाड्ने उर्दी, सैनिक अधिनायकवाद, गतिरोध अन्त्य, संसद अवरोध, सडक र सदन तताउने, प्रतिक्रियावादी, प्रभु , शिशु गणतन्त्र in addition to entirely new debates on sovereignty, international relations, globalization, human rights, transitional justice,development etc …

Bottom line is if the video is capable of inspiring a lazy blogger to write 600 words plus Entry only ‘You’ can tell what it will inspire you to do! Go Watch it and vote for it ( if you wish to).