Kathmandu – A House of Poems

Many of us are familiar with Kathmandu from the Speilberg franchise Indiana Jones.  We think of it as a remote hovel with seedy bars, inhabited by unsavory characters, in the middle of nowhere.  Here’s reportage from The Himilayan on a literary programme, held at the Image Ark Gallery, that provides a real glimpse into the social life of the city:

KATHMANDU: The courtyard of Image Ark Gallery, Patan was filled with literary figures and locals on the evening of July 5. Most people were standing and among them a few were stretching their necks to get a clear view of the things happening in the courtyard.

Meanwhile, the lights in a nearby temple added glow to the programme ‘Troubadours’, a poetry reading symposium organised by the gallery.

However, it was not only about poetry recitation — as Saguna Shah was reciting Sushmita Nepal’s poem Kabitako Ghar, artist Kiran Manandhar was painting inside the gallery. He was creating images that depicted the urban life.

The poem which Shah recited was about constructing a house of poems using the elements of nature. It reflected the 18th century romanticists’ poems that emphasised nature. It seemed like she was reciting the things necessary for constructing a poem and Manandhar was making her dream house inside.

Along with Nepal, the audience also heard verses of Madhav Prasad Ghimire, Manjul Nepal, Manu Manjil, Homaraj Acharya, Nayan Pokharel, Ujjwala Maharjan, Yukta Bajracharya and Gaurab Subba.

The recited poems were on the theme of a city — the same city where some wish to dwell in forever, the city which is a source of frustration, a confined space where people are forced to cry within the rooms.