Verse [Sep-Oct 2011] by Verse

Issue 5 | Sep-Oct 2011 | Rs.50

>> FASHION Navrasa: The Nine Primary Human Emotions

FILM AND DOCUMENTARY >> DIY DOCUMENTARY >> COLLECTIVE INSPIRTATION >> ART SPACE

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editorial

magazine

Documentary and film making in South East Asia is growing in popularity and quality in recent years. Concurrent to this bourgeoning popularity is the dynamism in which the film and documentary industry is developing across the region; the content is changing, the audiences are shifting, and those behind the camera creating the film do not necessarily conform to the dominant culture. This month Verse set out to explore how and why this medium is being embraced more readily in the contemporary context.

Editor Laura McManus

Assistant Editor Marina Menuka Lama

Creative Directors Sujin Joshi Ghanashyam Neupane Kishor Maharjan

Every two years Film South Asia, an organisation dedicated to the promotion of documentaries from the region, creates a space where film makers and impassioned audiences come together to discuss, critique and explore nonfiction films from the Subcontinent. This year’s event, held in the capital, will run from 29thSeptember to 2nd October. A similar event, to be held towards the end of the year is the Kathmandu International Mountain Film Festival, otherwise known as KIMMF. A unique characteristic of the KIMMF project is the Travelling KIMMF that will screen documentaries in more than nine rural communities. This outreach style project aims to engage intercultural interaction inspired and derived from the act of watching and learning about films.

Photographers Rajan Shrestha Sumit Shrestha

Illustrations Michelle Lama

Writers Rhea Gurung Manjil Shrestha Akriti Shilpakar Gokul Atreya

Marketing

The Video Volunteers project in India is similarly making the film industry more accessible to both audiences and film makers previously marginalised in the industry. Known as the democratisation of the film medium, an increase in technology such as small hand-held cameras has expanded the potential of the stories to view. Such “visual rights” and “info activism” is being taken up by social activists endeavouring to build the capacity and empower the citizens they are seeking to help.

Shyam Malakar Minnat Joshi Gaurav Dhungana

Promotion Kiran Shahi Kelsang Wangdu Reshma Tuladhar

Right here in Kathmandu, Sattya, a media arts collective, is working to achieve a parallel end. Hosting docotalks and soon documentary making workshops, the team hopes to motivate and inspire young people to have their voices heard.

Distribution RB News (Kathmandu) Safal Media House (Pokhara)

Printing Print Point Publishing(3P) Tripureshwor, Kathmandu 4249674/75

I hope you enjoy relaxing in the festival period with some of the films and documentaries you come across while reading. No longer boring, solely intellectual or reserved for high society, films and documentaries are more than ever a fusion of art, social inquiry and good stories to tell. Go out and watch one today.

Consultant Dr. Bipul Man Singh Contributors Antee Gurung, Anya Vaverko, Bimochan Niraula, Carroll Dunham, Kate Walton, Roli Mittal Jalan, Samir Mahat, Suraksha Nepal, Ujwal Thapa

Publisher: Line Media Pvt. Ltd. Manbhawan, Lalitpur, Nepal. Tel: 01-5546194 Regd. 251/067/068

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info@verse.com.np www.verse.com.np Verse magazine is published 12 times a year by Line Media Pvt. Ltd. All rights reserved. No part of this magazine may be reproduced, in whole or in part, without the prior permission of the published. The publisher will not accept responsibility or any liability for the correctness of information or opinions expressed in the publication. Each Issue: Rs. 50, Annual Subscription: Rs. 500 | Send us your subscription requests to subscribe@verse.com.np

on cover

Niken Maskey Concept & Photo: Rajan Shrestha

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contents 40 Kesang Tseten

Telling Stories

This Thing Called Happiness (Khusee Bhaneko)

DIY: Film-Making

Video Volunteers Globally Documentary Film South Asia KIMFF Word on the Street Trends for this Season

20 So, what exactly do you do here?

Collective Inspirations

70 23 countries in less than 12 months

Thumbs Up!

26 28 36 38 42 44

48 Bring out the colors of emotion this season

Navrasa

events

GIG-4 Perfect Dehumanization On August 27, Mortem - a local team that organizes underground gigs, collaborated with Silence Entertainment to manage the stage/sound and lights for GIG-4 Perfect Dehumanization, which was a selection of performances by various local underground bands. The gig kicked off at around 2:00 in Silence Street, Tangal with Spinal Discord performing originals such as Crop Circles, Dirt, etc. They also did a cover of the Parkway Drive song Pandora. Nakinjhyaa, a death metal band from Patan were the next band on stage and they had their originals too, namely, Blood 99, Raptured and The Doppelganger. They also did a Necrophagist cover-Foul Body Autopsy. Consequence, was the next band, they played Happy by Mudvayne, Psychosocial by Slipknot and PHOTO : KTMRocks another cover. They left the stage with huge appreciation from the crowd. Next Up Were Divine Influence, who put up a very tight performance with Lamb Of God’s Laid To Rest and their other originals. After Divine Influence-black metal band Garudh entered the stage doing a Satyricon cover-Mother North and three of their originals-Warnings of Impending Doom, Cursing them all in his dying words and Engraining the fingers of prayers. Went wild! Next, on stage were Rage Hybrid a new age influenced band who did a Parkway Drive cover-Bournyard, Blister Exists a Slipknot cover and some of their originals that made the crowd mosh. Bidroha, a thrash metal band had a Metallica Cover-License to Kill, a slayer cover and some of their originals. Black Sins Immortal gave one of the best performances of the day with cannibal corpse’s covers with songs like make them suffer, Decapitated’s Lying and weak, and some of their originals like Animated Apocalypse, causing some serious head banging. After them the most awaited band- Lost Oblivion performed. As usual, they were exactly what the crowd was looking for. They did 30-30/150, a Stone Sour cover. Dig, a Mudvayne cover, Duality/ Before I Forget-Slipknot covers. God Hates Us All and August Burns red cover. The band also made their mark with originals such as Twilight Ending In Red and Horror never stops. The finale was the new band ‘Underside’,who performed a couple of their outstanding originals GIG-IV certainly proved to be the best in the gig-series, which has been happening for a few years now. Thanks to the support of ktmROCKS and budding interest in the underground scene, we can now hope for better gigs. Thank you and a good luck to the Mortem And Silence Entertainment collaboration.

We Feel Responsible, DON’T YOU? At a time when the country is going through a rough time and not many of us seem to care, ‘network De social worker’ in collaboration with ‘Mero Desh Merai Dayitwo’ made an attempt to focus in raising voices for constitution drafting. It is an effort to show the political leaders that some of us do care about the tasks they are neglecting. The three days campaign took place on 7th, 9th and 14th September at Civil Hospital, Basantapur Durbar Square and Patan Durbar Square respectively. They were all 15 minutes silence process; starting at 5:30pm and ending at 5:45pm, where the youths stood quietly in the place with placards displaying messages of public frustration and anger. It was a platform for people to step out of their private lives to create a public voice. The brightest side to this campaign was that, people who actually cared didnt hesitate to step forward and joined in the group. This was a healthy and civil protest to demand accountability from the senior lawmakers and politicians. Sometimes, action speaks louder than words..but at times like these SILENCE speaks volumes.

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market

HOUSE OF ALTERNATIVE APPAREL Malvika Subba along with her childhood friend Manish Pandit officially announced the launch their fashion and creative design house - “House of Alternative Apparels” at Uttar Dhoka, Lazimpat on 20th August 2011 Saturday. The event witnessed some of their close friends, family, celebrities, supporters and keen fashion people who were eagerly waiting for the official launch of the clothing store. For the time being House of Alternative Apparel features three clothing labels. Eco Essentials is a pure organic line which promotes in organic wear. Just T’s solely focus on summer t-shirts with cool graphics and quotes. Aira which is solely a girls brand will be an assortment of everything for women from corporate, summers to cocktails dresses. Leading Nepali fashion designer Mr. Tenzin Tseten Bhutia has also designed an exclusive collection for Aira. All of these labels will be available in three different standard sizes—Small, Medium and Large. HAA mainly focuses on bringing out affordable, innovative and quality products to its clients. Prices of the HAA’s T-shirts start at Rs 750, Eco Essentials start at Rs 1,000, casual women’s wear costs around Rs 1,500 and evening wear are priced at Rs 2,000 and above. According to the co-founder of HAA, Miss Malvika Subba, these products are targeted at the 20-40 year age group. These products have also been featured in muncha.com targeting international customers.

Nada Auto Expo 2011 NADA Auto Show 2011 kicked off on September 7 with the theme “Auto Show for Road Safety”. The five-day show was held at Bhrikuti Mandap Exhibition Hall from September 5 to September 7. The show comprised of 43 different stalls from various automobile companies. The sixth autoshow had a massive sales record of around 200 four-wheeler cars and 100 bikes from different brands. The autoshow gathered a lots of crowd in the two-wheelers stall which included stalls from brands like Honda,Yamaha, Suzuki, Bajaj, Demak, Hyosung, Hardford, Global Bike and Piaggio. Honda bike stall proved itself appealing with its Rider Training Machine. And on the fourwheelers, Hyundai’s showroom was able to win ‘The Best Stall Award’ with the maximum number of bookings. Going with the theme of the show, Nepal Automobile Dealers’ Association focused a lot in the road safety issue. The show included a stall from traffic police where one could get information related to traffic awareness. The traffic police stall displayed various photos on traffic awareness and also videos were screened throughout the event. Also a seminar was organised on traffic safety and management to aware general public of the safety on roads.

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upcoming

Reading Under the sky Scheduled to be released by the first week of September, Reading under the sky is a short film directed by Prasun Sindhuliya and produced by Monalisa Moving Still. He is also the screenwriter of this 32 minute film. The movie has Ramsharan, Dhiraj Tamang and Prabin khadka who are also real life orphans and have recently ran away from their Orphanage. ‘Many plots of the movie is based on real life’- says Prasun who confirms that there was a mixed response from the audience when it was screened for the first time in Oscar international college of film study. Other actors include Sushil Upreti, Prakash Rokka, Salap Thapa and Mandip Gautam. The film is basically about the adventures of four street children whos lives change after they encounter with a good luck while collecting the garbage.

Silence Festival This October, the people of Kathmandu are going to behold one of the biggest musical events in Nepal-ever. Silence Entertainment will once again be organising their annual show, “Silence fest”, where bands from different countries and of different genres will share their music on the same stage. To be organised on Jawalakhel Football Grounds on October 15 this year, the event is excitedly being awaited by all heavy metal - hard rock fans of Kathmandu. And looking at the great lineup there is, a huge crowd is being expected at the show. Much of the excitement follows the energy of the previous “Silence Fest”. The team organized the first of this event last year at the same venue to a huge success. Different local and foreign bands performed including Enigmatik from Switzerland and Motherrocker’s Gang from Sweden. But the bands this year are even larger, the highlight of the show being one of the most inspirational death metal bands-VADER! Yes, the polish death metal giants from the early 80’s will be coming to town, a dream come true for all death metal fans in Kathmandu, thanks to Silence Entertainment. The other bands that will be playing are also quite impresive, including Helmut, a metalcore band from Switzerland, Inner Guilt from Lebanon, Innercore from Hongkong and our own Antim Grahan, Hatebook and new Rock N’ Roll band Underside from Nepal. With the highs of the first Silence Fest still fresh in our minds, expectations are that this year will not only be louder, but bigger, better and more memorable. The lights and sound setup, done by the organisers themselves, are hoped to be as good as last year too.

World Animal Day

MINE is a documentary about the essential bond between humans and animals, set against the backdrop of one of the worst disasters in modern U.S. history. This gripping, character-driven story follows New Orleans residents as they attempt the daunting task of trying to reunite with their pets who have been adopted by families all over the country, and chronicles the custody battles that arise when two families love the same pet. Who determines the fate of the animals —and the people— involved? A compelling meditation on race, class and the power of compassion, MINE examines how we treat animals as an extension of how we view and treat each other. Exact time yet to be decided but it will be Oct 1 in the afternoon. People can check our website, email us, or call for details.

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verse event

Upper Crust @ Krishna Villa TEXT : Manjil Shrestha PHOTO : Sumit Shrestha The spectacular and paranomic view of Kathmandu Valley was undeniably the most alluring and breathtaking one that Upper Crust attendees must have seen in a long time. All the houses and buildings lit with vibrant lights made it look like this city is still breathing and alive despite being the confluence of politics, pollution and population. Like a wise man once said, ‘There’s heaven everywhere.You just need to be in the right spot to see it...’ Well the wise man is justified at Krishna villa that rests in the heart of Budanilkantha. The Upper Crust event that entertained and kept the crowd on a jolly beat was surely one of those events that featured some very creative and acclaimed musicians in a boutique resort where luxury and recreation becomes a state of mind. The band Outrage Us (Mahesh Tandukar, Ian Eustis and Kismat D. Shrestha) did some jazz and funk numbers followed by Kristina Allen , backed up by Sunny Tuladhar, Abhisekh Bhadra and Kiran Shahi. They played Allens popular song like Pani Paryo and Walk Away from her new debut album- ‘Nabadhana’ and also did some cover songs. The members of Monkey Temple covered some good numbers like Joker and the thief. Space Cake Break, who enticed the crowd with their original numbers like ‘This Box’, ‘Facing West’, ‘Maggots Dream’, ’Donna’, and May be Bay. Krishna Villa represents fine food, luxury and lifestyle at its best. Gone are the days when only the privileged had the opportunity to wine and dine in luxury. Krishna Villa is open for anyone and everyone who likes living life king size and with a swag. The only downside being the fact that reservation should be taken beforehand. It is an ethereal hideaway for people searching for paradise on earth accompanied by gastronomically pleasant food, wine and a marvelous stay. The restaurant (La Vally View Restro & Bar) at Krishna Villa Resort serves mainly fusion gourmet French and Italian food. This year Krishna villa introduces premium caviar, foie gras, escargot, turkey, lime sorbet, Italian artisan ice creams, macaroons and several out door packages to entice your senses. It also presents wide ranges of menus from standard to V.I.P. The services become more personalised and the cutleries refined as you upgrade the menus. When you dine at Krishna villa, it’s the special treatment you get that makes the dining experience so much worthwhile. However, there are only three different themed rooms open for stay, the villa’s forte being quality rather than quantity. Each room has been detailed, customised and designed keeping in mind the taste and choice of varied customers. It’s these little details and extra effort that make the customer’s stay and dining experience memorable for a lifetime.Visit the resort once, you won’t regret it.

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Outrage Us

Kristina Allen

Monkey Temple

Space Cake Break

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gadgets

Lenovo Y460

Processor: Intel® Core™ i7-620M 2.67 GHz Memory: 4GB DDR3 1333MHz Hard Drive: 640GB Optical Drive: DVD ± RW Dual Layer Display: 14.0” WXGA LED Backlit TFT Screen Graphics: 1GB ATI Mobility Radeon HD 6550M Graphics Webcam: 2.0 MP Camera Interface: 6-in-1 Media Card Reader Dimensions: 13.4 in (W) x 9.3 in (D) x 0.8 - 1.3 in (H) Weight: 2.2 kg PRICE: Rs. 58,000.00

Asus X42J

Dell XPS

Processor: Intel® Core™ i5-430M 2.53 GHz Memory: 4GB DDR3 1333MHz Hard Drive: 500GB Optical Drive: DVD ± RW Dual Layer Display: 15.0” HD LED Backlit TFT Screen Graphics: 1GB NVIDIA GeForce Graphics Webcam:Yes Interface: 6-in-1 Media Card Reader Dimensions: 13.4 in (W) x 9.3 in (D) x 0.8 - 1.3 in (H) Weight: 2.2 kg

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Processor: Intel® Core™ i3-350M 2.53 GHz Memory: 2GB DDR2 1066 MHz Hard Drive: 500GB Optical Drive: DVD ± RW Dual Layer Display: 14.0” LED Screen Graphics: 1GB ATI Mobility Radeon Webcam: 1.3 MP Camera Interface: 5-in-1 Media Card Reader Dimensions: 13.7 in (W) x 9.3 in (D) x 1.3 in (H) Weight: 2.3 kg

BlackBerry Torch 9800 General: Display: Features: Colors

2G Network GSM 850/900/1800/1900 3G Network HSDPA 850/900/1900/2100/800 Type TFT capacitive touchscreen, 16M colors Size 360 x 480 pixels, 3.2 inches - Optical trackpad - Multi-touch input method - Proximity sensor for auto turn-off OS BlackBerry OS 6.0 CPU 624 MHz processor WLAN Wi-Fi 802.11 b/g/n, UMA (carrier-dependent) Messaging SMS, MMS, Email, IM GPS with A-GPS support Camera 5 MP, autofocus, LED flash Black, White, Dark Orange

PRICE : Rs. 49,990

BlackBerry Bold 9780

BlackBerry Curve 8520

General: 2G Network GSM 850/900/1800/1900 3G Network HSDPA 850/1900/2100 HSDPA 900/1700/2100 Display: Type TFT 65K colors Size 480 x 360 pixels, 2.44 inches - Touch-sensitive optical trackpad Features: OS BlackBerry OS 6.0 CPU 624 MHz processor WLAN Wi-Fi 802.11b/g, UMA Messaging SMS, MMS, Email, IM GPS with A-GPS support Camera 5 MP, autofocus, LED flash Colors Black, White

General: Display: Features:

2G Network 850/900/1800/1900 Type TFT 65K colors Size 320 x 240 pixels, 2.46 inches - Touch-sensitive optical trackpad OS BlackBerry OS CPU 512 MHz processor WLAN Wi-Fi 802.11b/g Messaging SMS, MMS, Email, IM Camera 2 MP Colors Black

PRICE : Rs. 20,490

PRICE : Rs. 39,990

BlackBerry Curve 9300 General: 2G Network GSM 850/900/1800/1900 3G Network HSDPA 850/1900/2100 HSDPA 900/1700/2100 Display: Type TFT 65K colors Size 320 x 240 pixels, 2.46 inches - Touch-sensitive optical trackpad Features: OS BlackBerry OS 5.0 WLAN Wi-Fi 802.11 b/g/n, UMA (carrier-dependent) Messaging SMS, MMS, Email, IM GPS with A-GPS support Camera 2 MP Colors Black, Red

PRICE : Rs. 26,860

Now Buy Authorized www.verse.com.np

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cover story

FILM AND DOCUMENTARY www.verse.com.np

Collective Inspiration

TEXT: Kate Walton

“So, what exactly do you do here?” Six months after Sattya Media Arts Collective established itself in its current building behind the zoo in Jawalakhel, this is one of the questions we hear most. And that’s fair enough, because for most people, a media arts collective is a new concept. It was new for me, too, when I came to Kathmandu almost five months ago to intern with Sattya. Sattya aims to be resource network for creative people in Nepal – for writers, photographers, filmmakers, journalists, artists, and storytellers of any medium. Sattya is a place where people can come and not only learn new skills, but share their skills as well; where people can express their own opinions in addition to hearing about the perspectives of others. Sattya began when photographer and filmmaker Anya Vaverko and VENT! Magazine founder Yuko Maskay started talking about setting up a creative space in Kathmandu. Anya and Yuko saw that there were so many enthusiastic creative people here who lacked a place where they could gather and inspire each other. At almost every event or workshop, there is somebody who says to us “Wow, I didn’t know that this sort of place existed in Kathmandu”. At Sattya, we want to make media accessible to everyone, whether they come from an artistic background or not. Our workshops and screenings have been attended by engineering students, bankers, salespeople, forestry workers, and communications consultants, in addition to writers, photographers, artists, musicians, and filmmakers. Our vision is to eventually be able to reach out to rural and non-Englishspeaking people as well as our current urban audience. We’re not there quite yet, but we’re working on it. Some of Sattya’s most popular events are our weekly documentary film screenings, shown either on our rooftop or in the screening room, depending on the weather and season.

We’ve shown documentaries on philosophy, DIY culture, religion, women’s rights, and climate change, shot in locations as varied as Liberia, Mongolia, Palestine, the US, and the Pacific. In addition to our regular screenings, Sattya also runs a program called Docutalk, in which everyone is invited to take part in a post-film discussion with speakers knowledgeable about the film’s issues. In September, our Docutalk screening explored globalisation and garbage management through the Cairo-shot documentary Garbage Dreams, and featured speakers from trash and recycling organisations like WEPCO and the Kevin Rohan Memorial Fund. Docutalk is a great way to develop a different perspective on issues relevant to us – when we watch a story unfold on the screen, it touches us and provides us with a deeper understanding. Because of that, the post-film dialogue that is so central to Docutalk is not formal or theoretical. Everyone can have their say. Sattya also offers media skills sharing workshops. Some of our members’ favourite workshops so far have focused on topics including blogging, photography, audio storytelling, and stencil making. One area that we haven’t so far provided much training in, however, is that of filmmaking. This is because filmmaking requires a serious time commitment from both participants and facilitators. But there is some good news on the horizon – Sattya is planning a whole host of longer, more intensive workshops on film and photography that will take place over the next few months and into 2012.

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Although we do love films in general, Sattya’s trainings and screenings focus on documentaries. We do this because we believe that documentaries provide different perspectives to those given by fiction films. Documentaries allow people to speak for themselves, and to tell their own stories about their lives, their experiences, and the issues that affect them and their communities. Our favourite documentaries have a few things in common: they have little or no narration; they follow an individual or a family closely and without hiding anything; they show us lives and lifestyles we would not otherwise be able to come close to understanding; they leave us with more questions than answers; and they are filmed over long periods of time – three years in the case of one of our most-loved documentaries, Last Train Home. But most of all, our favourite documentaries are simply inspiring. They are beautifully shot, they make us ask questions, and they leave us wide-eyed at the end, wanting to know more. They do not just advocate for a cause, nor just show pretty pictures or scenes of poverty. They invite us in, keep us riveted, and tell us a story. Sometimes we even forget they are documentaries. This is why we believe documentary filmmaking to be a hugely important skill to share with others.

“Documentaries allow us to understand a perspective that is totally different from our own and to look into a lifestyle, a world, that is maybe totally foreign to us,” Anya says. “Unlike other media, such as photography or writing, documentaries appeal to people no matter what their literacy, education or background is.” “Documentaries have a tendency to touch us more than a news article and often more than a photo, even though those are also important media. A documentary can push people into action, can cause people to change their perspectives, and can also be just an amazing tool to teach people about the world around them.” Although a number of documentaries have been made in Nepal, and despite the hard work of some great organisations and film festivals, few local documentaries have managed to reach a broad audience. Many international documentaries are also poorly-distributed or simply go un-shown in Nepal, as well as in many other places around the world. Sometimes, the only documentaries people have seen are those that were shown to them in school, which often leads people to think of all documentaries as boring. “Documentaries don’t have to just be about poverty or sad stories. They can be funny, they can be inspiring, they can be about anything. They can be shot beautifully, and they can be just as interesting as a fiction film, if not more. ‘Fact is stranger

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than fiction’, right?” That said, documentaries can still be powerful tools for advocacy and activism. “At their best, they can change people’s perspectives and bring about real social change,” Anya says. “Nepal must have millions upon millions of untold stories. They deserve to be recognised and shared.” For aspiring documentary filmmakers, Anya’s advice is to push the boundaries and break the mould. “Documentaries that take place in Nepal don’t have to start with a montage of the Himalayas, Durbar Square, and city traffic, overlaid with traditional Nepali music. I want to see documentaries that are not made for foreigners about “the mystical Himalayan kingdom” or a poverty-stricken thirdworld country.” “I want to see more documentaries made for a Nepali audience, both urban and rural, on themes like the urban arts and music scene, or what it’s like growing up a transgender child in a rural village, or what it’s like being a woman who is forced to live in a shed during her period.” Even the smallest two sentence article in the newspaper is just waiting to be turned into a powerful, meaningful documentary.

Docs we’d like to see made about Nepal Pollution in the Kathmandu Valley.

China’s growing influence.

The pressures put on students to do well in their SLC.

Falling groundwater levels.

The LGBTI community.

The arts scene.

Young people working to improve Nepal.

How roads are changing the country.

Animal rights.

Stories from remote areas.

How Kathmandu has changed – environment, citizens, culture – over time.

Students coming back (or not) from overseas. Bureaucracy.

The changing status of the elderly.

ILLUSTRATION : Michelle Lama

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Must-read filmmaking books All available in Sattya’s library!

Chris Gore’s Ultimate Film Festival Survival Guide How to successfully pitch and market your film.

Video for Change This book shows how activists and human rights campaigners can harness the power of images and stories. It’s covers everything you could ever need to film a documentary.

The Shut Up and Developing Shoot Documentary Story Ideas Guide How to find ideas and generate If you want to make a film and don’t know where to start, this is the perfect book. Its tagline is “Any Budget. Any Camera. Any Time.” Full of illustrations and easy-tounderstand tips.

great stories out of them. This book is for all mediamakers – writers, documentary makers, playwrights, and photographers.

Producing with Passion

Grammar of the Edit

How to make documentary films that change the world.

Learn how to edit your documentary once you’ve shot it.

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Sattyaâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s Top Ten Docs Last Train Home Follows one Chinese family over three years as they attempt to work, live, and make the annual new year migration home.

Babies The birth-to-first-steps stories of four different babies in four different countries: Nambia; Mongolia; Japan; and the United States of America. No narration, just sights and sounds.

Garbage Dreams The story of the worldâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s largest garbage village, near Cairo, Egypt, and what happens to the jobs of the people who live there when a foreign recycling company is brought in by the government.

Beautiful Losers Focuses on the lives and careers of a group of alternative New York artists in the 1990s who use DIY aesthetics to create their art.

Patti Smith - Dream of Life A creatively-filmed documentary about rock singer and musician Patti Smith.

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Afghan Star Documents an Idol or X-Factor style musical talent search called Afghan Star, a TV show watched by one-third of Afghanistan’s population.

Examined Life Philosophy as you’ve never seen it before. Takes eight contemporary philosophers out onto the streets and asks them to explain the practical implications of their ideas.

Taqwacore The Birth of Punk Islam – Explores one of the world’s newest music genres, Islamic punk, by following The Kominas as they tour the USA and Pakistan.

There Once Was an Island Tells the story of a Pacific Island community facing the loss of their land and lifestyle due to rising sea levels caused by climate change.

Pray the Devil Back to Hell Chronicles the remarkable women of Liberia who came together to protest the ongoing civil war and to bring peace to their shattered country. www.verse.com.np

feature

Video Volunteers Transforming who, how and why films are made TEXT: Bimochan Niraula

What led to the conception of Video Volunteers?

abin Rai from Sikkim faced a harsh childhood. Violence in the community and at home kept his early days in chaos. He dropped out of school early because the teacher physically abused him at times. “After that I struggled a lot, sometimes working as a cleaner in trucks, sometimes as a driver, sometimes doing other jobs”, he remembers. Finally, he saved enough money to buy a camera and with this camera, he began taking pictures of both rights and wrongs in his community. When he joined Video Volunteers, Labin knew what stories he wanted to bring out. He knew about the ethnic misunderstanding that happens in small communities. He knew of the deforestation going on in rural parts of North India. And what he captured with his camera are stories far more stunning that many of the stories shown on mainstream Indian news channels. Labin is one of many unique reporters from Video Volunteers, a non profit organisation that delivers its name:Videos from Volunteers. Founded on the truth that no news agency or TV channel can report all of the issues that happen in our societies, especially not the issues related to the poor and rural population,Video Volunteers strives to bring marginalised voices to the fore. If someone from a similar community can take up the stance to bring out these unheard voices (India Unheard is one of the programs by Video Volunteers), then even such small places will be able to speak up and out to the big world. That is the true essence of Video Volunteers. Jessica Mayberry founded video Volunteers in 2003 while spending time in India. Jessica is a TED Fellow, it is just one of the many awards she has won and the foundation itself has many awards likewise. Since then it has come to grow as a multi-national non-profit organisation with headquarters in New York and operational offices in Brazil and Goa, India. The volunteers in India are taught by Stalin K, an Indian documentary maker with his own great ideas. Jessica herself spends her time between India and New York. For this edition of Verse, Jessica has been kind enough to answer a few questions for us.

Jessica: There are hundreds of millions of poor people in India who don’t have a voice - meaning, the media doesn’t provide them the information they need, and their knowledge and ideas and stories are absent from the media. I started to see that today, rather than bemoaning the challenges of the mainstream, the poor can ‘make their own media’.

What were the first days like, especially keeping in mind the context of India? Jessica: In the early days, I was spending most of my time out in the field training people, learning from rural women, being inspired. I still get to do that, but now I have a full organisation to run, so other people get to train the community members in video, so you could say the early days were more fun. It’s always hard to start a social enterprise or an NGO, but it is also very rewarding - and it makes me feel lucky to have been born in this time in history, when it is so easy to create cross-cultural exchanges and to work across time zones.

What has the reaction and support from government authorities been like? Jessica: We are under their radar. Sometimes community producers run into problems with authorities, but also, there are times where the producers take help from local officials, or publicise programs that they run, and they find that beneficial. We do a lot of work on corruption, and that can of course attract attention. But our community producers also find people locally who are doing good things too.

How welcome are the general public to this idea? Do they open up to talk about their problems easily? Jessica: People in villages are no different from us. Just as we love to publicise our daily activities on facebook, so they love to share their ideas on camera, in our community films. But it’s not always easy. People like to talk about what other people are doing that’s bad - ie,the government! But to talk about what

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they are doing, that’s hard - domestic violence, caste-ism - that is harder. But we’ve been lucky about that in many of our areas, we’ve been working for five years now, and we’ve had the staying power to show people that they can now open up about the tough things

What notable challenges have you faced, as a company or as field agents? Jessica: We’re trying to professionalise our network of community producers so that we can expand more, by partnering with the mainstream media. But so many of our people face challenges that make it very hard to work the way the media will expect they wake up at 5am to cook and clean; to get an interview, they sit for three hours on a bus, and then the official won’t talk to them. They have to courier their footage to us because there is no internet. These are the realities of working with the poor, and so we have to find partners (media buyers) who also buy into the mission.

Who are the major supporters behind VV? Has the collaboration with other NGOs/INGOs been fruitful? Jessica: Our biggest supporters have been the Knight Foundation, Echoing Green, UNDP and a few others. And yes, NGOs are so crucial to our work. We got our start through six NGOs giving us the seed money to start our first programs. Only after we could say, ‘look, these local NGOs think media will make, a difference and are willing to pay for it, we must be on to something!’ to encourage funders to come on board.

What are your future plans for expansion, particularly Nepal? Jessica: We would love to come to Nepal! We have a dear friend Thomas Kelly, www.thomaslkellyphotos.com, and we hope to bring Video Volunteers to more places through him.

What would be the number one thing you’d tell to a “video volunteer” that wants to set afoot capturing the hidden stories in our society? Jessica: Think about what you have, that no professional journalist has. Learn to discover the power of your own community connections, and the fact that you are someone who has lived through these hardships, and use this personal connection to become a valued journalist.” We at Verse would like to thank Jessica for her time. We wish her luck and hope that all her future efforts be successful. Jessica can be found at: Jessica Mayberry Founding Director www.videovolunteers.org/ http://apps.facebook.com/causes/48114 http://twitter.com/videovolunteers Watch our videos: indiaunheard.videovolunteers.org

TEXT : Bimochan Niraula www.verse.com.np

Globally Documentary A genre of cinema and, now, like a virus growing rapidly amongst the inquisitive masses

very summer since 1988, the U.S public television series, Point of View, has shown documentary films. Since early in 2006, the documentary channel has been broadcasting documentaries 24/7.Cable television networks such as HBO, The History Channel, Discovery Channel and Bravo have similarly financed and aired many first-class documentaries. Bell Auditorium at the University of Minnesota became the first theatre in the U.S air exclusively documentary films. Film festivals such as the Full Frame Documentary Film Festival, the Hot Springs Documentary Film Festival, the Yamagata Documentary Film Festival (Japan), and other film festivals are all devoted exclusively to the art of documentary. And now shifting focus to the documentaries in Nepal, one cannot help but mention the much admired Tenzin Seshi, a robust 34 year old Tibetan man who speaks English in an eruption of phrases gleaned from quotes and Hollywood movies. Being less scholarly and instead fascinated by glitz and glamour,

Tenzin began a modeling career in 1998.Regrettably it wasn’t successful, but he persevered in the arts and in 2009 he congregated all that he had to solely organise a Tibetan cultural dance, universally known as Lung Ta, in Boudha. The event got him his first taste of triumph and also made Tenzin quite popular amongst the foreign tourists, many of who were also filmmakers. He was soon catapulted to the azure skies of cinema. Primarily he was casted in minor roles of international documentaries in countries like Germany, America and Russia. Nevertheless Tenzing’s quest for cinema was escalating at rapid speed when in 2000 he seized an opportunity to work under a German director named Thorson Grun who not only included him in two important projects, “Baby massage” and “Mahayana audination”, but also taught him one of the most critical component of film makingediting. And then, in 2002, a contemporary expedition threw him into the centre of the documentary world when he worked under French director, Eric Valli, for National Geography for an assignment called “Honey Hunter”. In the same year he also worked with a young American director called Christ making a documentary about Tibetan singers who sang pop, rock, blues and jazz.

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But it was in the closing stages of 2002 when, like a volcano about to erupt, Tenzin burst onto the stage, his raw, amateur passion driving to direct his first documentary feature film. In addition to directing, he caste and produced the film, entitled “Melong” (there’s no creator or no creation, our mind is greater), exclusively on his own. **which he first projected in Bodhgaya, a holy assemblage

German director named Thorson Grun who not only included him in two important projects, “Baby massage” and “Mahayana audination”, but also taught him one of the most critical component of film makingediting.

where Tibetans from all around the globe gather. No prizes for guessing the answer, not only did he gross profit but also grossed a lot of appreciation for being the first Tibetan director as a certificate to which he was called in 2003 to Switzerland by Tibetan woman association to telecast his movie in one of the most legendary theater Now, Like someone rightly said along with some fleeting rays of light also comes a tableau of darkness so Tenzin too was grown by stern authoritative parents who like old school thinking wanted him to do a course in engineering and get a decent job but a rebel he was. He locked himself in a begrimed space with basic necessities learning all he could about films; from the Internet, exploring his camera, writing scripts etcetera This he did for four long years until came a day when he apprehended that the acquaintance he acquired some technical polish for which he enrolled himself in AAFT (Asian academy of film and television). Now coming back to today Tenzin has finished his second documentary again solely produced by him labeled “Miliu Rinopoche”(Precious human life) and is now mastering on his third feature film labeled the “Great misfortune life” due to release on the Dec 25th And finally like one knows when ends a caterpillar comes a butterfly, in the same manner Tensing too while talking of the procrastinated future rightly claims that until now he has only fulfilled his dream by directing three movies that belonged to his native language Tibet but the vision is still left where he hopes to direct movies not only for Nepal where cinema is still to mature leaps and bounds but also for international cinema.

Text: Roli Mittal Jalan www.verse.com.np

feature

DIY: Film-making

camera has become everybody’s everyday commodity. Today, new DIY is making videosbe it for a song , a parody, an interesting thing caught in motion, a photo compilation, an event, a family video, or a documentary. We see it overflowing on sites like YouTube. Film-making is all the rage these days. From professionally done films with care given to cinematography to amateur videos with sometimes just the message to hold the film from falling right apart- one should be only too eager to DIY. This Thing Called Happiness: Khusi Bhaneko is a short film made by Anya Vaverko, a practicing photojournalist, stencil artist and the director of Sattya Media Arts Collective. The approximately 10 minute long video is about what happiness means to different people. The idea for the film started when Anya wanted to escape Kathmandu for a little while. Her original intention was to travel, and to film something, meanwhile. “It wasn’t anything serious or anything hardcore journalistic. I was looking for projects to do that would engage people. Anya travelled from Kathmandu to Nuwakot and then to Lamjung, Manang and Mustang. Her aim was to shoot different people about their take on happiness. The subjects of her film range from small children who find happiness in ‘cars, jeeps, swings and balloons’ to working middle-aged and old people who find theirs in ‘Osho meditation’. One of the first and most difficult tasks about filmmaking is to find a subject matter and to decide on a concept. The concept lies at the heart of the film. There are a lot of ideas out there, or better, in there for those who seek. Anya says,’ I knew I wanted to ask one question to all of them. I would roam around villages wondering what I would ask the villagers, regardless of their age, sex, religion and ethnicity.’ When asked why the question about happiness, Anya replies, “There are times when one feels low and wonders what it is really that makes one happy- what makes other people happy.” The key

here seems to be to be curious- towards what the subject matter has to offer and to anticipate surprises. She chose this particular media to portray her idea because she had always been interested in the field. She has done some documentary screening at Sattya and has come across many who share this interest. Her video, though made with no big ambitions has generated a good response. When Anya came back with the videos, her friends at Sattya were excited about her project. “There are some skills that I don’t have. I am not the best editor and I can’t make the background music. But my friends at Sattya were like, ‘Why not make it better?’ They helped me improve the project.’ However Anya wanted to pay her friends for their services. She has therefore prepared a budget of $500 and put her video up on Kickstarter. A website that allows people interested in helping her project to contribute a certain amount. Since garnering funds is an obstacle in itself, Anya advises people to put up their videos on such websites. The contributors are given credit for the movie itself and are sometimes sent a DVD. Movies give a stimulating touch to any piece of information. Anya encourages people to film things. She says, “Even just a digital camera will do if it has a video mode.” She believes Sattya would also be of great help, if anyone wants to be involved since it is “ a resource network for artists, writers, filmmakers, photographers, and other creative types of people in Nepal and it aspires to be a hub for DIY culture, collaboration, inspiration, and learning for emerging media artists.” The video is still up on Kickstarter for anyone who wishes to view it or contribute to it. Website: http://www.kickstarter.com/projects/anyavaverko/ this-thing-called-happiness-khusee-bhaneko

Text: Rhea J Gurung

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Santa Bishwakarma, 24, Manang

“I don’t have a father. I don’t have a mother. I don’t even have any brothers. I’ve got no one. I am alone. Happiness or no happiness, it’s just that. What can I do? What is going to make me happy? That’s what I am pondering.Will it work out or not?”

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John Rai, Dhading

“Jeep, car, and...swing. Balloon!”

Babita Shrestha, 11, Nuwakot

Happy? What makes me happy? Dancing, singing, that’s it. Eating makes me happy!

Hiranath Neupane, 16, Nuwakot

Relaxing is happiness. Having fun is happiness. Chatting with friends, roaming around.

Mangal Bishwakarma, 38, Manang

In life, let there be no suffering. Live and eat without worry. That is the best life.

Subina Pariyar, 14, Nuwakot

I like Dashain. You get to play on the swings. At home, you get to eat good food. Thatâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;what makes me happy.

Ful Maya Gurung, 50, Manang

Joking around and playing pranks is all I need. Talking makes me happy. If I happen to meet you, then talking to you. If I happen to meet someone else, then talking to them. Thatâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s it. Happiness. What else is there? What can you take with you when you die?

Lalteen

Short Film Factory Pawan Tiwari; an ardent communist has lost faith in his surrounding world. A condolence draft about himself enables him to take off in search the other world. While; Suman is in love with her female counterpart Chahana whose recent murder in the shabby streets of Kathmandu is taking time to render. As both desperately seek identity and a space that defines their existence; Lalteen takes shape. Produced by Harke Films for Short Film Factory, Lalteen is Factories first project and aims a premiere showcase at the Nepal Cine Symposium in November. Lalteen is an amalgam structure feature film that sees two independent film structures directed by Kshitiz Adhiraj and Abinash Shah respectively take on a single form as the two thematically merge. Lalteen, is the first of six films that Short Film Factory has plans to produce between 2010 and 2014, all of which are targeted at promoting discourses on cinema as an art form. Short Film Factory was initiated as a specific film fund project of Docskool in 2010; facilitated and funded in principal by Harke Films,a production company overseen by filmmaker Kshitiz Adhiraj.The Lalteen project has also been supported by The Goteborg International Film Festival Fund through a seed grant to Docskool. Goteborg Film Festival is considered one of the strongest film funds in the world, while the festival has a very strong Scandinavian presence. Lalteen is expected to make a festival presence at theGoteborg Film Festival later in 2012.

Short Film Factory works as an openly accessibly fund base that supports young filmmakers under the age of 30 who are currently working on their first feature films. Unlike the name, SFF is not involved in funding short films. The fund opens applications once – twice a year and supports are provided as production grants with up to 5,000 USD in offer as the latest arrangements. In 2010, SFF started the SFF 5 rupee cine fund; a venture concept that enables common masses to be involved in the coproduction of films. Lalteen is the first of films being funded by mass collection of co-production funds. Lalteen has an actors ensemble including Prawin Khattiwada, Pooja Gurung, Pashupati Rai, Samuna K.C mong others. Music to the film has being performed by Kutumba and Bibhusan Basnet. Lalteen should be seen in theatres across Nepal in the summer of 2012. Upcoming screening is at the Nepal Cine Symposium, November 2011. (Dates have not been confirmed) To be involved with Short Film Factory please visit Docskool or www.sffn.docskool.org

Nepal Cine-Symposium Cinema Through Network

The Nepal Cine Symposium – 2011 is a film and art event that aims to promote and communicate in those aspects of cinema that are not facilitated by film festivals or by regular aspects of commercial filmmaking. Designed as an open forum, The Nepal Cine Symposium is an accessible platform with multiple programs under one roof for four days bringing together filmmakers, film producers, film exhibitors and lobbyists together to interact, share information and open global collaboration possibilities with South Asian cinema. Its first venture taking place in Kathmandu in 2011, the symposium, alongside Nepali cinema as a central focus, aims to interact on issues relating to South Asian cinematic growth and the positioning of how regional cinema can proceed in the days to come. The final event will comprehend ideas of a festivalwith various networks gridded together enabling the existence of a larger seminar and a film market based structure that carries with it various dimensions which can propel overall growth of cinema in the region.

Nepal Cine Symposium is organizing the main film showcase program ‘Something like a FILM FESTIVAL’ which will take place alongside all other activities of the symposium, and is one of the four core programs at the 2011 Nepal Cine Symposium. ‘something like a FILM FESTIVAL’ aims to promote the understanding and sharing of fiction contents from both the visible and the hidden cinema countries of the world; as suggested by the name itself, we believe in the charm and the aspiration of cinema beyond conventions – this alone being the main guideline of the festival. The 2011 edition, shall exhibit a wide selection of fiction related feature and short length films finely selected to represent the new global aspirations on fiction film from both professionals and amateur filmmakers.

Film South Asia

n the most ordinary of times when a good film comes to an end, the audience applauds, the director and the crew steal the limelight and the viewers go home feeling good. Strangely, in this genre of cinema, things aren’t the same because what has been spun out is a good deal of reel, and only reel. Documentaries seem to have a different meaning to its projection of stories, of peoples and of places. If there is a chance to get close with the people, lives, places and reality that you have not seen or met then sometimes documentaries are your only chance.Yet, it is not a daily dose of hard news. Documentaries are real, the set is real, everything projected is raw, the actors are the soul of the stories and the directors have a very complex situation of capturing these moments alive, nothing has changed even after the documentary is over. The protagonist continues to live what he lived inside the camera. There is simply no end to a story of a real person, place, or situation. Film South Asia, has been promoting some very interesting and important documentaries of South Asian Countries that reflect a variety of aspects ranging from conflicts, social disturbances, and music to politics, events, and sports. With a goal to popularize documentaries so that it entertains, informs and changes lives, FSA brings together film makers in one festival where ideas and concepts are shared and the Non fiction documentaries are exposed to regional as well as international avenues. FSA runs for four continuous days in Kathmandu. The documentaries go through a tough competition that’s judged by a three member south asian jury and the best film gets awarded the Ram Bahadur Trophy along with a citation and a cash prize of USD 2000. The second best film and the best debut film introduced will be awarded a citation along with a cash price of USD 1000 each. The competition is so fierce that many a time the jury is compelled to split the title in between two films. The FSA this year is slated to take place from Sept. 29 to October 2. Directors, in most of these documentaries, have been remarkably bringing to light the smallest of issues that

TEXT : Manjil Shrestha

have been rooted for a national level degradation. Among the four Nepali documentaries selected for the screening at FSA, ‘Journey to Yarsa’ and ‘Saving Dolma’ are directed by Dipendra Bhandari and Kesang Tsetan respectively. ‘Aadesh Baba- So be it’ is directed by Aurore Laurent and Adrien Viel while Stefeno Levi directed ‘Out of the Darkness’. The FSA, not only screens these documentaries at the festival but also selects around 15 documentaries to travel all over the Subcontinent and the world as the Travelling Film Southasia (TFSA). Hence TFSA has been promoting the skill and potentiality of Southasian people by show casing the stories of this particular region in an international avenue and creating a contemporary subconsciousness among the viewers. Though Documentaries are gaining popularity among the audience, Kshitiz Adhiraj(Director of Being Me) from Doc school has a different approach and perspective on it. He firmly believes that Documentaries today have lost its original essence. According to him, documentaries should be conceptual and more of an art form rather than being sold on the stories of social imbalances and traumas faced by the poor and suppressed. He believes that the quality of documentaries is degrading with the same old themes being propagandized and repeated over time. That’s why he doesn’t do Documentaries anymore. Well the cliché of the coin having two sides cannot be ignored. I personally like documentaries since it gives us insight into the entire subject that would never have made an impact in our lives if it hadn’t been captured by the filmmakers. In developing countries like ours, it is one of the most powerful visual mediums to bring the stories that have been overlooked to life. FSA, for the eighth edition of this kind, has been conserving the spirits and dedication of these independent films. Mark in your calendar that starting 29th September, FSA 2011 is going to screen the following movies till the 2nd of October.You can find the time schedule for the screenings at filmsouthasia.org

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Mark in your calendar that starting 29th September, FSA 2011 is going to screen the following movies till 2nd of October. You can find the time schedule for the screening in filmsouthasia.org •

Aadesh Baba-So Be It, Aurore Laurent and Adrien Viel, Nepal

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Nero’s Guests, Deepa Bhatia, India

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The Nine Months, Merajur Rahman Baruah, India

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The Other Song, Saba Dewan, India

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Apour Ti Yapour. Na Jang Na Aman.Yeti Chu Talukpeth, Ajay Raina, India/Pakistan

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The Boy Mir-Ten Years in Afghanistan, Phil Grabsky, Afghanistaazn

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Out of the Darkness, Stefano Levi, Nepal

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Partners in Crime, Paromita Vohra, India

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Common Ground, Philip Buccellato, Sri Lanka

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Pink Saris, Kim Longinotto, India

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Cowboys in India, Simon Chambers, India

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Platform No. 5,Vanaja C, India

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The Darjeeling Himalayan Railway, Tarun Bhartiya, India

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Saving Dolma, Kesang Tseten, Nepal

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Dharavi, Slum For Sale, Lutz Konermann, India

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The Search for Justice, Tehmina Ahmed, Pakistan

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Director Painter Shri Baburao Laad Saheb, Richa Hushing, India

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So Heddan So Hoddan, Anjali Monteiro and KP Jayasankar, India

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The Dreaming Vendors, Ahmed Abid, Bangladesh

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Summer Pasture, Lynn True and Nelson Walker, Tibet Autonomous Region

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I Am, Sonali Gulati, India

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I Was Worth 50 Sheep, Nima Sarvestani, Afghanistan

This Prison Where I Live, Rex Bloomstein, Burma/ Germany

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Inshallah, Football!, Ashvin Kumar, India

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Tres Tristes Tigres, David Munoz, Bangladesh

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Ishpata, Afsheen Sajid Ali and Irfan Ali Shah, Pakistan

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The Truth That Wasn’t There, Guy Gunaratne, Sri Lanka/UK

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Jai Bhim Comrade, Anand Patwardhan, India

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Jharu Katha, Navroze Contractor, India

War and Love in Kabul, Helga Reidemeister, Afghanistan

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Journey to Yarsa, Dipendra Bhandari, Nepal

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Kerosene, Kannan Arunasalam, Sri Lanka

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Made in India, Rebecca Haimowitz and Vaishali Sinha, India/USA

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The Market, Rama Rau, India/Canada

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Moving to Mars, Mat Whitecross, Burma/Thailand/ UK

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Nargis-When Time Stopped Breathing, Kyaw Kyaw Oo and Maung Myint Aung, Burma

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Going on Tall and Strong like the Mountains It Talks About What do adventure, culture, religion and snow have in common? Here’s a clue- it begins with an ‘M’ and ends somewhere about 8848 m above sea level. Mountains have shared an intricate relationship with human beings from their effect on the geography of their being to their effect on aesthetic activity. While human beings have explored, probed, reached and ‘conquered’ mountains or parts of them, they still stand among us- vast, obscure, enigmatic and even intimidating. However, if the mention of mountains were in our prayer flags during ancient times, they are now in little guidebooks for tourists, in a trekker’s bag pack, a voyeur’s blog, or on a painter’s canvas. Our relationship with the mountains is getting woven into more complex patterns as the tapestry elongates. Kathmandu International Mountain Film Festival (KIMFF) has been examining these patterns and celebrating its diversity since the year 2000.

KIMFF

KIMFF, organized by the Himal Association, started out as a non-competitive film festival held every two years. Since the year 2006, the festival promised to happen annually. Today it serves as a melting pot for the likes of filmmakers, activists, journalists, critics and both film and mountain enthusiasts. A non-profit organization, it has had four film festivals to its credit that involved alpine documentation, archival footage, adventure cinema, experimental shorts, commentaries, anthropological narratives, and feature films to name a few. To date, it has explored mountains, its community and their culture to bring about films that portray and deal with issues as far and broad as cultural practices, lifestyles, conflict, wildlife, mountain-climbing, environment, globalization, and gender. KIMFF screens films, organizes workshops, lectures and discussion forums and photo and book exhibitions related to mountains. KIMFF does not just intend to provide a platform for filmmakers; its mission is far more broad and versatile. With the belief that ‘human experience in the world’s highlands, especially those in developing countries, is worth documenting and sharing’ KIMFF intends to put forward the reality of these communities, culture and thus create a sense of understanding and significance. It intends to see development and social transformation through the use of films and thus the exposure. Every year, KIMFF invites filmmakers to enter the competition for the film festival. This year they received 240 entries from 52 countries. A 10-member jury has been viewing the films and 45-50 of the best films will make it to the next round. The directors of the best three movies are to be awarded $1500,

$1000 and $500 respectively. The Nepal Panorama winner takes home Rs. 25000.The list is due this October. We all wait eagerly. Verse talked to Ms. Ramyata Limbu, the director of KIMFF since 2000 about KIMFF and her experience as a filmmaker. She has co-produced the independent documentary “Daughters of Everest” and “The Sari Soldiers”, a documentary feature that follows six Nepali women on the forefront of the Maoist conflict in Nepal.

Who or what inspired you to join filmmaking? As a professional journalist I learnt about different issues. I like travelling, researching and learning. Thus, it was actually a natural progression from print journalism to filmmaking.

What do you think about the documentary making scene here? Just give us an overview? Since the past decade, filmmaking has grown over time due to cheap technology like the internet and camera.Younger people are getting into filmmaking out of interest and passion rather than because they have the skills to do so. It is important to have passion but it is equally important to have the technical know-how to really make a difference.

Tell us about your experiences as a female filmmaker. I don’t think gender really affects filmmaking. However, as a woman, I identify with subjects of women. It was why I decided to follow women who were on their way to climb Everest for a documentary. It was also why I focused on women during the conflict in my other documentary.

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commitment is due to the belief that it can only grow, drawing inspiration from our previous performances.

Travelling KIMFF

Along with the upcoming KIMFF 2011 (8-12 December), the organization with the cooperation and the support of Embassy of Finland and Federation of Nepalese Journalists district chapters also have organised the Travelling KIMFF this year. The Travelling KIMFF plans to visit different towns in Nepal including Panchthar, Ilam, Myagdi, Nawalparasi, Arghakanchi, Dadeldhura, Baitadi, Doti and Kailali. The idea for travelling KIMFF is to encourage intercultural interaction and sensitivity towards the need to preserve the mountain community, essence and the cultural diversity. Verse talked to Mr. Basanta Thapa, chairperson of KIMFF about the Travelling KIMFF. Basanta Thapa, also a Board member of the Himal Association has headed the organization since 1998. He is a former editor of the Himal bimonthly and a former columnist for Himal Khabarpatrika, the Nepali fortnightly. First of all, tell us about your experience with KIMFF, and its progress since it was last conceived. KIMFF has grown in size and stature since 2000. We have shifted our venue from the Russian Culture Center to bigger venues like the auditorium of the Nepal Tourism Board. The ancillary activities like workshops, exhibitions, lectures also draw a lot of people. We generally have a full house. In these years we see more Nepali viewers than foreigners, when it used to be the expats and tourists who used to outnumber Nepali viewers before. It is good to see that the interest in Nepali people is growing. Our target is the youth, so we send out invitations to colleges and schools. We also receive a lot of interest from outside the country. Last year we had 61 countries plus Nepal participating. The experience is gratifying because we had a very modest beginning. Our biggest obstacle was and still is funding. We have no permanent sponsors therefore every event requires starting afresh with searches for sponsors. In other countries, the government forces help cultural events like these which is not so, unfortunately in the case of Nepal. Perhaps it is our inability to convince the government that films can be a good means to educate people. We are passionate about KIMFF, which is why all of us are doing it voluntarily. Our

Two years ago we were featured in Time magazine. Also, we were recruited to the Finland Mountain Film Alliance. This recognition is indeed very gratifying.

How did the Travelling KIMFF happen? We did not want to be Kathmandu centric. We decided to put all the best films or even just the relevant ones in a package, looked for funding and set out.

How is it different from the usual KIMFF viewers or simply, the viewers in Kathmandu? We have been instrumental to many Nepali documentary makers. Also, we have a group of ardent viewers in Kathmandu. The regular faces always turn up. In the other districts, it is a new thing which makes it naturally different compared to showing it to people who are aware of what they see or what to expect. We hope to inculcate a group of people among the many viewers who might be deeply touched or inspired.

Since this is Tourism Year 2011, how do you think KIMFF helps it? We do intend to focus on Tourism this year. We have people coming to Kathmandu from other cities in Nepal. As for international tourists, we have about two dozen who fly in just for KIMFF which, I would say, is quite an achievement.

Tell us more about Nepal Panorama. Why this platform? In 2007, we went competitive. We had many movies coming in and we had pre-selection and short-listing before they went on for screening. It was then that we understood that Nepali doc-makers could not compete against the foreign ones due to obvious reasons. We wanted to provide them with exposure and encourage them to continue, which is why we chose 30 movies for the Nepal Panorama section. It has been very helpful. Some of our filmmakers have been contacted by Festival Directors from Finland to be a part of their film festival. Also, there are other people who scout for talent which provide the Nepali filmmakers with a lot of opportunities.

Films to be screened at the Travelling KIMFF:

TEXT: Rhea Gurung

1. The Broken Moon (55 min/ Brazil): won first prize in KIMFF 2010 2. A Little Bit Mongolian (55 min/ Australia): won second prize in KIMFF 2010 3. Waiting for the Snow (40 min/ Morocco) 4. Saving Dolma (57 min/ Nepal) 5. Pooja (58 min/ Nepal) 6. Puneko Pant (34 min/ Nepal) 7. Darka Aasuharu (32 min/ Nepal) 8. Birami Sahar (75 min/ Nepal): won best award in Nepal Panorama Section

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profile

Telling stories: Kesang Tseten Film Southasia is an organization which has been supporting and showcasing Southasian documentaries since 1997. The Film Southasia festival is held every two years where the best documentaries of the region are screened. The eighth edition of the fest is to be held from 29th September to 2nd October 2011, here in Kathmandu. ‘Saving Dolma’ a documentary from Kesang Tseten is one of the 36 films participating in this year’s festival. Kesang Tseten is a filmmaker based in Kathmandu and has been making documentaries for more than a decade now. The award winning writer and director has made documentaries like Saving Dolma, We Homes Chaps, In Search of the Riyal, We Corner People, Lepchas of Sikkim, Listen to the Wind, Frames of War and Machhendranath.

We Homes Chaps was featured in Film Southasia’2001 and now ‘Saving Dolma’ is participating in Film Southasia’ 2011. As a nonfictional filmmaker what sort of challenges did you face over the last decade in this genre of filmmaking? Kesang Tseten: So were, ‘In Search of the Riyal’ and ‘We Corner People’. The biggest challenge is the filmmaking itself: how to find the right treatment for the particular subject that means knowing what and how to film, and how to edit, in the shaping of a film. The subject is different each time, with its own discussion, your own understanding and feelings about it, so how to find the film, to tell the story, is the challenge that returns each time.

Do you think that Film Southasia has succeeded in popularizing documentaries in our region? Kesang Tseten: Definitely. Both Film SouthAsia and Kimff, both spawned by Himal Association, as well as other smaller festivals have been significant and instrumental, in expanding the audience and taste for documentaries

Your films ‘In Search of the Riyal’ and Saving Dolma’ tells the stories of migrant workers in the Gulf. Explain their influence upon you. Kesang Tseten: It is basically a David and Goliath story, where people – and poor people – go to the richer powerful country; they both need each other, but the rich one can play off the

poor more than the other way around. However, it is more complex as there are many shades of good guys and many shades of bad guys. We can’t demonize ‘them’, the Arabs, or whatever, as a lot of problems are rooted here itself, caused by manpower agents, government policies, the wages here, one’s own people or even relatives. Many have a hand, and so it is a challenge to show these realities accurately. How to show these and not distort or misrepresent or be unfair to anyone; how not to be simplistic: So I’m influenced by peoples’ stories and experiences that point to a web of complexities that pervade the phenomenon of migrant workers. I guess empathy for these common people is the constant feeling while making these films.

What was the biggest challenge that you faced while making ‘Saving Dolma’? When did you first hear of Dolma? When you first met her did she readily agree to let you film her story? Kesang Tseten: The challenge was the difficulty of access, to Dolma, to the women working in Kuwait, as I couldn’t go there. So I had to depend on footage that was gotten by other people, some of which was very good, but they too had limited access. Also, how to tell a story using the single example of Dolma, sentenced to death and sitting in death row (subsequently, her sentence was commuted); how to tell such a complex and personal story without delving too deeply into the personal, and how to make it work so it conveys the general condition of women domestic workers.

Documentaries normally do not achieve commercial success. Have you ever thought of making mainstream commercial movies? Kesang Tseten: I would love commercial success but it’s not why I make documentaries. I make a livelihood, so I consider that good going, doing what I like and getting paid. I have thought of making a feature - let’s not say mainstream commercial films - but when I finish a documentary, the next one somehow seems to loom, so I continue. But even there I wouldn’t do it to get commercial success because it isn’t that easy, for one. I would do it to try a different form, but only if I had a story I absolutely liked. That aside, I don’t see documentary as an inferior form or something you do as a rite of passage before making a feature. That notion isn’t valid. It all

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depends on how well you do it, how satisfied you are rather than the idea that features are a higher form than documentary

How have you been managing the funds for your films? Kesang Tseten: I have been lucky to get funding regularly for all but one of my films. The Swiss Agency for Development Cooperation (SDC) has been very good, Helvetia’s, too, in funding the films and giving me a free hand to do it anyway I see fit. That kind of freedom is rare. I have also gotten grants from the The Jan Virjman Fund and the Pusan International Film Festival which are given on a competitive basis.

Has the audience of documentary films grown over the last 10 years? Do you use facebook or other social media to reach your audiences? How can they get access to your films? Kesang Tseten: I’m sure the audience has grown, thanks to several film festivals (FSA, Kimff, some others and lots of opportunities for screenings, but it would be wonderful if television slotted documentaries on a regular basis, real documentaries, not reportage and news features. They do but we have to pay for it at present. Then it would reach a huge audience. I don’t use social media all that much except to put up notices for screenings. I guess I’m not such a great marketer.

What inspired you to follow the lesser popular style of filmmaking? Are there other filmmakers who inspire you? Kesang Tseten: I don’t know what is popular and what isn’t. I think about my subject, film in a way that I think is suitable, or often, I don’t have a plan but film as a way of research, and

then see how to solve the puzzle, of finding the best vehicle for the material. Most times, it’s the material that suggests the form. There are lots of inspirational figures such as, these days, Frederick Wiseman, who makes long observational films about American institutions (Titticut Follies, Near Dying, High School), the Maysles (Salesman, Grey Garden), Erroll Morris (The Thin Blue Line, Gates of Heaven), Ross Mcelwey (Sherman’s March, Time Indefinite), and many more.

Three other films from Nepal have are being showcased in the upcoming festival. Have you watched those films? What is your opinion of those films? Kesang Tseten: I haven’t watched the other films from Nepal and don’t know about them.

What is the condition of independent filmmaking in Nepal? Do the independent filmmakers of Nepal meet and exchange ideas on a regular basis? Kesang Tseten: Independent means different things at different places. If you mean, a film’s content and form that is produced free from sponsor’s interest, I think that is happening, to some extent but not alot because there isn’t funding to support that, and also our capacities. We tend to be influenced by the issues that have funding interest, which is to be expected as who can make a film out of his or her own pocket, but that’s the situation. That and the fact that we are fairly new to this kind of expression, or not as developed, given the lack of practice and experience. We tend to know each other, filmmakers, that is, but there isn’t a thriving discussion or scene going on, I don’t think. I suppose it will happen when we are ready for it.

INTERVIEW AND TEXT: Samir Mahat

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street

Word on the Street Who is your favorite actor/actress? Why is he/she your favorite? And what would you do if you could meet him/her?

dit ala Pan

Sar

Ambika Khanal

Shresth

- Rajesh Hamal

- Salman Khan

- Shahid Kapoor

- etikai mann parcha

- Dance, acting mann parcha

- paila dekhi ahile samma jasta ko tastai hunu huncha, budho nai hudaina

- autograph linchu

- first ma faint hunchu. tespachi autograph line ani photo khichne

- kina ahile samma bihe nagarnu vayeko vanera sodchu

apa h T a m ee

- Lee Jun Ki - natural acting huncha

Sabitri

yast a K a t i Sab

- Aryan Sigdel

- Niruta Singh

- acting ramro

- acting, bolne style

- kuro garincha

- autograph line ani question haru sodhne

- kura haru garne

Januka

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Gir a n h is

- Hari Bansa Acharya & Madan Krishna Shrestha - chhutai para ko natak ani prabhavkari pani hune. “mantri vaneko janata ka gothala hun” vaneko mann paryo

ebl G e ik

Dipu Nepa

- Humphrey Bogart - Salman Khan

- He’s cool

- Looks, dressup, comedy, acting

- He’s dead

- keti vaye po thikai cha dating jana hunthyo

- swagat garchu

Sahaku

Bobby B

amjan

apit

N Suman

- Rajesh Hamal

- Amitabh Bachchan

- acting mann parcha

- ‘Chini Kum’ movie bata inspire vayera

- salute garchu

l Thapa

- Rajesh Hamal - acting ramro lagcha - mauka ta payeko thiye, paila courier ma jagir huda

- dherai kura haru sikchu

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trends

Trends for this season TEXT : Antee Gurung Fashion is a rage that travels through places and time. I believe Fashion and style goes hand in hand. “Fashion and Style” is an aspiration shared by everyone as it is an extension of your own personality. It is what defines your exterior and evolves you in certain ways you might not comprehend. For some people, clothes might just be a mere piece of fabric stitched to wrap around your body but a true stylist sees them in a different light. A light from where they can navigate the difference between color, cut and silhouette with the drop of a hat. When a person smiles, the outfit must smile with them. Fashion should be spontaneous and something that you do for yourself, not just to impress others. When an aesthetic eye meets a stylish tasteful soul, there is an emergence of a true fashionista. A true fashion follower is someone who truly appreciates and takes fashion as an art or an iconography. Someone who genuinely enjoys the whole process that goes into making the perfect look. As technology is developing rapidly, the world is getting smaller and smaller, making various altering fashion aspects accessible to even a small country like ours. Evidently, Kathmandu’s fashion scenario has definitely peaked by a good fraction in the last few years.Yes! Kathmandu, a city full of fashion enthusiasts and clothing stores even at the nook of any random street. Fashion is undeniable even for those who contradict it. We all love to look a certain way from a young punk who can swear an oath to never get over “black and studs” or a woman who limits herself to only saris or a man who cant imagine himself wearing anything but “khaki with chapals” to a girl who can vouch her life in the name of Chanel, Prada,YSL and Gucci. Acknowledge it or not, we all live with fashion accompanied by our own personal style and temperament. What is so great about fashion is the fact that it speaks in volume and transcends different attitudes and reaches out to a general mass. We are all of different shapes, sizes, color, character and that is what makes the world so interesting to live in. The various trends that come and go with each season are the elements that make fashion enviably our hottest accomplice. As a blogger I’m here to tell you ‘What to wear’ for this crazy monsoon and forthcoming autumn with these 12 hottest trends to die for-

• CODE DENIM: Denim is an eternal fabric that is a ‘must have’ for everyone but this season it got stronger than ever. Dresses, jackets, shirts, corsets, shoes, skirts, hats, bags, shorts….It is all over the place. So get onto the denim fever with head to toe denim or funk it up with accessories or leather jackets and boyfriend shirt.

• STRIPES AND SHEERS: Stripes and sheers are still heading strong. From multicolours to classic Breton, seems like this trend might be staying here for a while.

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• UMBRELLAS: Many people might not pay attention but umbrellas are the key ingredient for a hip monsoon style. There are various types of cool umbrellas available in the market. So say hello sunshine’ to rainy weathers with your new cool bright umbrella.

• BACK TO BASICS: Nude, Black and white are still going strong. These three basic palettes have the power to go neutral, sober to sexy. So if you know your style, work your magic with any of these colors.

• ACIDIC NEONS AND GOLD: Neon and acidic colors are creating quiet frenzy in the fashion circuit right now. So make a dramatic entrance with neon, acidic or gold accessories. Get electrified this season, with these astonishingly exciting palettes.

• LOUNGE LOOK: Go back to the 70’s as jump suits and floral divided skirts are back. They are easy to wear and look classy, flirty and understated. For day time opt for cotton or light flowy jumpsuits while for the night, pair draped, layered jumpsuits with statement necklace and heels.

• SULTRY GLAMOUR: If your style is all about parties and glamour, don’t forget to try these season’s three hottest trends i.e.; gowns/ dresses with high slits, asymmetrical dresses and Mixi dresses (new found word for a dress inspired by the mini and the maxi)

• CRAFTY STATEMENT JEWELERY: Get innovative this season as crafty jewelries are really “IN”. They have a wide potential of lending a unique look to an outfit. It’s making room for new DIY for Fashion bloggers and stylists all over the world. So buckle up and bring out your best scissors, needles and crafts to unleash your creative side.

• SUMMER JACKETS: Boyfriend blazers and cropped jackets in fruity colors are very hip this season. So team it up with a nice dress and a panama hat to go for cool effortless style.

• BRAIDS, BUNS AND PONYTAILS: We are all tired of letting our hair loose in this hot damp weather while getting it damaged. So for this season braid your hair/tie up in a bun or a pony tail to look cool, funky or even sophisticated.

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• BOLD ORANGE: From tangerine to saffron, Orange is the hottest colour to flaunt this season. Add a hint of orange accessories, to bring life to any of your plain outfit.You can also work your way into your office by combining orange with white and beige. If you are into sporty look, wear orange shorts with casual statement t- shirts.

• WIDE LEGED TROUSERS: Wide leg trousers were showcased on runways since the last couple of seasons by several designers like Oscar de la renta, Zac Posen and Dsquared but still skinny jeans were ruling our wardrobe. However the trend is quickly rising above so ladies flaunt them as they are the new classics. Aren’t we all tired of skinny jeans and tights?

• LESS IS MORE: if you are not into OTT (over the top) style, you can always opt for this season’s classiest trend by adding structured suit, white sheath dress or simple outfit with clean cuts.

• PUNK IT UP: Light weight leather, uneven hemlines, spiked jackets, dr. martens, torn jeans and tees are all the rage among the youthful crowds. So don’t hesitate to unveil your wild side.

I believe fashion speaks a universal language and when u let fashion take over your body, it definitely uplifts your personality and positivity in life. So, keep it true to yourself and try these trends above as a rocking autumn awaits you.

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• MIXED PRINT: Animal prints, geometric prints are really hot this season. As the patterns are fierce and strong, light make ups and no accessories work best in creating a perfect elegant look. Polka dots are also making a fierce come back. This season just let the prints do the talking.

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fashion

Navrasa The navrasa evoke good and bad, light and dark, bold and beautiful. Let your clothes speak the word for you. Joy, compassion, beauty, mystery, fear, peace, courage, disgust and anger - you know what weâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;re talking about. All the world is a stage and we are but mere actors in the play of life. Take centre stage, but do it with attitude and impeccably dressed! Bring out the colours of emotion this season.

Concept and Photography : Rajan Shrestha Styling : Marina Menuka Lama Wardrobe : Sphinx..., Times Square Mall, Durbarmarg Models : Hannah Hodgson Riya Gautam Marina Menuka Lama Make-up : Pratima Gurung (9808503810)

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Rasa : Shringar (Beauty) Model : Hannah Hodgson Green Maxi, Rs. 2390 from Sphinx... at Times Square Mall, Durbarmarg. www.verse.com.np

Rasa : Adbhuta (Surprise) Model : Riya Gautam Colourful Shirt, Rs. 1690, Green Cotton Shorts, Rs. 1190, Silver bangles, Rs. 525 and Red Hills, Rs. 2790 from Sphinx... at Times Square Mall, Durbarmarg.

Rasa : Raudra (Anger) Model : Marina Menuka Lama Netted tank, Rs. 1390, Jeans shorts, Rs. 1590 and Brown studded hills Rs. 3490 from Sphinx... at Times Square Mall, Durbarmarg.

Rasa : Shanta (Peace) Model : Riya Gautam Flowered printed Maxi, Rs. 2390 and black necklace, Rs. 1090 from Sphinx... at Times Square Mall, Durbarmarg

Rasa : Karuna (Compassion) Model : Hannah Hodgson White lace, Rs. 1790, Black cotton shorts Rs. 1190 and Black bangles, Rs. 390 from Sphinx... at Times Square Mall, Durbarmarg

Rasa : Veer (Courage) Model: Marina Menuka Lama Chloe Blue dress, Rs. 2490 and Black studded flats, Rs. 1490 from Sphinx... at Times Square Mall, Durbarmarg.

Rasa : Bhayanak (Fear) Model : Riya Gautam Blue and White checked dress, Rs. 1490 and Grey Hills, Rs. 2690 from Sphinx... at Times Square Mall, Durbarmarg

Rasa : Hasya (Happy) Model: Hannah Hodgson

Striped Outer, Rs. 1190, Grey printed tee, Rs. 1090, Jeans Shorts, Rs. 1590, Black flat, Rs. 1590, Black bangles, Rs. 390 and Beaded Necklace Rs. 1075 from Sphinx... at Times Square Mall, Durbarmarg

Rasa : Vibhatsa (Disgust) Model: Marina Menuka Lama Beaded Print Tube, Rs. 2790, Studded Hills, Rs. 3490 and Black bangles, Rs. 390 from Sphinx... at Times Square Mall, Durbarmarg

flavours

Blue Sea

Ingredients Impoeted Vodka

45ml

Blue Curacao

45ml

Lemon Juice

10ml

Method . Pour all the ingridients into a cocktail

Glass Martini Glass

shaker with 3 cube of ice then shake well. .Strain into Martini Glass . Garnish it with fresh apple slice, cherry and Lemon Peel

Prepared By: Bar-Tender Mr. Subash Lama Moods Lounge and Bar

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Cinnamon Grill Lounge Try It. You Will Like It.

When Cinnamon opened for service two years ago, it was capable of grabbing my attention immediately. However, for one reason or another I never stepped in, until last month. The name itself is enough to alert all your senses for good food. And it serves nothing less than that. Moreover, the place has a fabulous ambience, inside and out. When I say ‘out’, I mean it. It is the hidden side of the restaurant at the back with a small garden, which many may not be aware of. The interior is done in dusky orange, copper brown and a golden yellow; Cinnamon being the entire theme. Just like cinnamon, the restaurant gives a sweet and savoury feel. It is warm and welcoming. The lounge is spacious and yet gives a cozy comfort feel, many wish for. It is superb to catch-up with your pals and rock to some live music. But the best part of being in Cinnamon is the food. There is nothing better than a plate full of hot, delicious, aromatic food to dig in to. We had the kitchen’s special, Pork chops and Buffalo Chicken Wings. The generous pork chops were tossed in spicy barbecue sauce and served with a big dollop of

mashed potato and buttered vegetables. The meat was tender, juicy and the sauce over it made it picture perfect. The mashed potato was pretty good. It wasn’t buttery smooth but had even seasoning. The Buffalo Chicken Wings are fried chicken wings tossed with fried garlic, hot sauce and rice wine vinegar. The serving of wings was a humble amount, crackling on the outside but soft and juicy on the inside. Here, the sauce is undoubtedly the hero of the dish. For drinks, we were served a mocktail named Pussyfoot. It is a lady’s drink, meant to be real smooth, refreshing and ofcourse lady-like. Well, it wasn’t the best drink I ever had, there was nothing really exceptional about it. Dessert was definitely my favourite part of the entire meal. The Banana Split looked beautiful and it was worth the price. Overall, it was a satisfying experience. When there is music in the air, a cool drink to sip on and delicious food, what more can one ask for, for less than Rs.1000? It is one of the coolest hangouts in Patan and you wouldn’t want to miss it.

TEXT: Akriti Shilpakar PHOTO: Sumit Shrestha www.verse.com.np

restaurants 62

Durbar Marg

Lazimpat

New Road

Thamel

Magic Beans Sherpa Mall DurbarMarg, Kathmandu 4230914 Gazebo Restro Lounge DurbarMarg 9841397603 Coffee Shop Durbar Marg 4221711 Ghar-E-Kabab DurbarMarg 4221711 Vintage Café & Pub Woodland Complex, DurbarMarg 4254831 KFC Restaurant/Pizza Hut DurbarMarg 4226287

Attic North Gate, Lazimpat Bhumi Restro Lounge Lazimpat 4412193 Olive Garden Radisson Hotel, Lazimpat 4441818 Street Café Lazimpat 9841657041 Pizza Express Lazimpat 2161212 Shambala Garden Café Shangri-la Hotel, Lazimpat 4412999 Him Thai Restaurant &Bar Lazimpat 4418683

Shisha Café New Road 4263668 Café Olla Restaurant & Bar Kantipath, Jamal 4232673 Vishram Restaurant Basantapur 2012127 Revolving Restaurant Ratna Plaza, 4th Floor, NewRoad 4241712 E.D.E.N. Food Court & Lounge Bar Kathmandu Mall 4150062

Rum Doodle Jytha Street, Thamel 4248692, 424815 Sisha Terrace Bar & Restaurant Thamel 2091137 Jatra Thamel 4256622 The Factory Thamel 4701185, 4701187 Fire and Ice Pizzaria, Thamel 4250210 Aqua Java zing Thamel 4254809

Patan

Boudha

Babar Mahal

Moksh Gyanmandala, Jhamsikhel 5528362 Café De Patan Mangalbazar 5537599 Patan Museum Café Patan Durbar Square 5524694 Dhokaima Café Patan Dhoka 5522113 Absolute Bar Hotel Narayani Complex, Pulchowk 5521408

The Café Hyatt Regency Taragaon, Boudha 4491234 Rox Restaurant Hyatt Regency Taragaon, Boudha 4491234 Boudha Stupa Restaurant And Café Boudha 2130681 The Bakery Café Boudha 4464438

Walter’s Restaurant & Bar Babar Mahal Revisited 4253337 Baithak Babar Mahal Revisited 4267346 Shogun Restaurnat & Bar Babar Mahal Revisited 4263720 Chez Caroline Babar Mahal 4263070

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music

Bikrant Shrestha Established in the mid 2008, Silence Entertainment has already put its mark in the Nepali local scene. Organizing their yearly “Silence Festival” the event has become popular among the youths of our country. The second edition of the event will take place on October 15 at the Jawalakhel Football ground. By opening up our scene to bands like Vader, Silence Entertainment has revolutionized the local scene today. We got a chance to take a brief interview with the founder/owner of “Silence Entertainment”, Mr. Bikrant Shrestha.

How and when did the idea of establishing “Silence Entertainment” come to your mind? Actually, Silence entertainment came to my mind around 2005, when I was still in Europe and was involved in a band. As being around in a musical scenario, I met lots of musicians and people in music business, who helped me in establishing our silence entertainment. My vision was and still is to improvise something different in the entertainment sector. SILENCE, which visualizes on maximum creativity, has come a long way to describe the virtue of entertainment in a whole different aspect.

How is it doing?

How significant is the Silence festival for the local scene? Very significant. We are trying to bring the best of the both world by bringing local and international bands together in the same stage at the same day, which I believe has never happened before. Every good local bands will get the opportunity to play at the festival. We only promote original bands and no cover. So, yes, get ready for the next year’s Silence Festival. I want more bands to come on the stage.

Tell us a little bit about “Tone Music Store”. TONE MUSIC STORE- one of a kind music store in Nepal, bringing only the good and affordable instruments. We not only sell instruments but also conduct workshops, clinics and lots of different musical sessions. One of the great Swedish guitar players – Mattias Eklundh, is coming here this 31st October at Tone music store to demonstrate his way of playing. We are also the official agent for LANEY Amplification that Silence Entertainment has recently launched in Nepal.

So far so good.

Do you have any plans of expansion?

How is the response of the people it is directed at?

Yeah, there are lots of plans of expansion. We will let you know when time comes.

The response so far has been very good.You will see the difference in couple of years. Everything takes time and every good thing happens over time not overnight.

You’re engaged in a band called “Underside”, tell us a little bit about the band.

Why did you choose to invest so much in this field? We haven’t invested so much in this field. What we have done is, analyzed and prepared a long term investment in order to bring the best performances all the way.

How has silence entertainment managed to get hold of bands like Vader, for the Silence Festival?

UNDERSIDE is a modern Rock N’ Roll metal band with complete originality and completely crazy. We are playing at the silence festival this year, so stay tuned. We will also soon be releasing our EP and we will probably be playing at the festival “Boulevard des jeunes” in Morocco next year and probably couple of dates in Europe. We have a facebook page where you get the other information about the band.

What are your future plans? There are many but not to reveal, yet (Laughs)

There are lots of band in hold of Silence Entertainment. We have many international bands that we hold on as an official booking agent for the Asian region. We are glad that we have Vader this year playing at the festival. Helmut from Switzerland, Innerguilt from Lebanon and mighty GUIDO WYSS.

Is there anything you would like to say at the end? No yesterdays are ever wasted for those who give themselves today. One day at a time.

INTERVIEW AND TEXT : Gokul Atreya 64

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book review

Rage of Angels

- Sidney Sheldon

One of my all time favorites among Sidney Sheldon’s novels is, “Rage of Angels”, a real page-turner by the master storyteller. Published in 1980, it was adapted into a miniseries in 1983 which was followed by the sequel “Rage of Angels: The Story Continues” (1986). The story is based on the lives of three main protagonists: Jennifer Parker, a young assistant district attorney, with big ambitions. Michael Moretti, the would-be successor of the Mafia in America, on her first case and Adam Warner, her future love interest and lawyer who later on gains huge success in politics. Read about their lives as Jennifer finally achieves her dream of becoming a prominent lawyer, Michael runs the family and Adam sets on his journey towards the White House. The story evolves around the many twists and turns that make Sheldon’s novels so compelling. Sheldon’s novels are said to resemble parts of the author’s real life, and this one is no exception. It’s a complete package of love, passion, power, struggle, and scandal. Jennifer symbolizes strength, determination, feminism and vulnerability. Michael, coming from a troubled past, has to go through a lot and finally reigns as king of the mob-world. Adam, on the other hand, has to make the choice between what he wants and what is expected of him. The characters have their own stories and Sheldon keeps all of them moving at the same pace, which creates many a good cliffhanger in the story.You will definitely get drawn into a fictional world. I remember the time when I read it, after each chapter I would think just one more chapter now, and before I knew it, I had completed the whole book! The characters of the story seem so realistic; you can feel their emotions. To prove that even further, here is another fun fact. Sheldon says in his autobiography that women wrote to him saying they had become lawyers because they admired Jennifer so much. I was enthralled by the way the cases and their handling were described. At first, I had thought that all the courtroom descriptions would be boring

for someone like me who doesn’t know a thing about law. However, now I can say that those were the best parts. Rage of angels is definitely a thrilling adventure and the kind of story that you won’t be able to get out of your head. It all combines together to deliver a masterpiece, for me, Rage of Angels is definitely a book worth reading over and over again. You just can’t put it down!

TEXT : Suraksha Nepal www.verse.com.np

movie review

Rise of the Planet of the Apes Since the first King Kong movie in 1933, many ape movies have made their mark on the silver screen. But with each and every movie, they have advanced in terms of technology and the magical experience they can provide. From monkey masks to actors playing in a motion-capture monkey, ape movies have come a long way. So, for the movie’s astounding visual effects and the applaudable story, Rise of the Planet of the Apes is definitely one of the best movies of the year. The movie is set in San Francisco in the near future. The film opens at Gen Sys; a genetic therapy phamaceutical company, where a geneticist Will Rodman (James Franco) has been using apes for tests in developing a drug which could cure Alzheimer’s. He is desparate for the drug because his father Charles (John Lithgow) suffers from it. Will also has adopted a chimp named Caesar, who gets orphaned when his genetically enhanced mother gets killed after running wild at his lab. But the story is less about Will or his father as much as it is about Caesar who emerges as the hero. He is not a mere chimp, he is a child; a very bright one indeed. He isn’t just doing acrobatic jumps in his attic playroom or hanging on to cords and swinging on the ceiling lamp of the kitchen, he is actually reaching for destiny higher than a cookie jar. Andy Serkis playing the monkey in motion capture, gives life to the creature. The time travel from youth to maturity is presented in a beautiful sequence, where he climbs the tops of the highest tree in Muir Woods as a young chimp and then is shown staring across the San Francisco bay, fully grown. As a matured ape, he is agressive, but his first act of violence is in defense to his “grandfather”. That is when the real action that we oh-so waited for begins. Caesar attacks the neighbour after he sees him threatening Charles for accidentally wrecking his car. For that, he gets sent to an animal shelter, where he is ill-treated by the warden and a sadistic guard. Among all the other brawn chimps, Caesar knows better, so he makes an escape and filches a supply of the wonder drug and gives it the chimps, an orangutan and a gorilla. He liberates the others, playing the Alpha, leading them to revolt against the human opressors.

Will’s ambition to improve life through science is questionable. Frieda Pinto, playing his girlfriend is the one who raises the most questions. While revolting, there are times when the apes stop short of harming their opressors, making us feel as if the chimps are more humane than human themselves. The story is about revolt, a question mark on science and so much more. Everyone can have his or her own interpretation to how the story runs but if that isn’t what you’re looking for, it is still a joy ride. The performances by the actors are fine. Pinto stays in her role as the vet and Will’s girlfriend, but there is nothing more special than that. Director Rupert Wyatt has taken a big leap with this movie after his 2008 debut “The Escapist”. The movie is a technical landmark and Serkis as Caesar has a huge part in making it happen. In fact, he might even put on a challenge for the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences to give him an Oscar, even though he is never seen on screen. The movie is fantastic and every scene grabs your attention. It can put you in your seats, and without a muscle moving make every inch of you twist and turn. The movie is a triumph of spectacle; a must watch.

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TEXT : Akriti Shilpakar

this month’s read

The Night Circus by Erin Morgenstern

The circus arrives without warning. No announcements precede it. It is simply there, when yesterday it was not. Within the blackand-white striped canvas tents is an utterly unique experience full of breathtaking amazements. It is called Le Cirque des Rêves, and it is only open at night. But behind the scenes, a fierce competition is underway—a duel between two young magicians, Celia and Marco, who have been trained since childhood expressly for this purpose by their mercurial instructors. Unbeknownst to them, this is a game in which only one can be left standing, and the circus is but the stage for a remarkable battle of imagination and will. Despite themselves, however, Celia and Marco tumble headfirst into love—a deep, magical love that makes the lights flicker and the room grow warm whenever they so much as brush hands.

The Postmistress by Sarah Blake

In 1940, Iris James is the postmistress in coastal Franklin, Massachusetts. Iris knows more about the townspeople than she will ever say, and believes her job is to deliver secrets.Yet one day she does the unthinkable: slips a letter into her pocket, reads it, and doesn’t deliver it. Meanwhile, Frankie Bard broadcasts from overseas with Edward R. Murrow. Her dispatches beg listeners to pay heed as the Nazis bomb London nightly. Most of the townspeople of Franklin think the war can’t touch them. But both Iris and Frankie know better...

Every Day a Friday: How to Be Happier 7 Days a Week by Joel Osteen

The title comes from research that shows people are happiest on Fridays. Pastor Joel Osteen writes how we can generate this level of contentment and joy every day of the week. Known as a man who maintains a constant positive outlook in spite of circumstances, Osteen has described this message as a core theme of his ministry. Combining his personal experiences with scriptural insights and principles for true happiness, he shows readers how every day can hold the same promise and opportunities for pure joy that they experience at five o’clock on Friday.

The Postmistress is a tale of two worlds-one shattered by violence, the other willfully naïveand of two women whose job is to deliver the news, yet who find themselves unable to do so. Through their eyes, and the eyes of everyday people caught in history’s tide, it examines how stories are told, and how the fact of war is borne even through everyday life.

this month’s watch

I Don’t Know How She Does It

Kate Reddy (Parker) devotes her days to her job with a Boston-based financial management firm. At night she goes home to her adoring, recently-downsized architect husband Richard (Kinnear) and their two young children. It’s a non-stop balancing act, the same one that Kate’s acerbic best friend and fellow working mother Allison (Christina Hendricks) performs on a daily basis, and that Kate’s super-brainy, child-phobic young junior associate Momo (Olivia Munn) fully intends to avoid. When Kate gets handed a major new account that will require frequent trips to New York, Richard also wins the new job he’s been hoping for-and both will be spreading themselves even thinner. Complicating matters is Kate’s charming new business associate Jack Abelhammer (Brosnan), who begins to prove an unexpected source of temptation. Straw Dogs

David and Amy Sumner (James Marsden and Kate Bosworth), a Hollywood screenwriter and his actress wife, return to her small hometown in the deep South to prepare the family home for sale after her father’s death. Once there, tensions build in their marriage and old conflicts re-emerge with the locals, including Amy’s ex-boyfriend Charlie (Alexander Skarsgard), leading to a violent confrontation. www.verse.com.np

Drive

Ryan Gosling stars as a Los Angeles wheelman for hire, stunt driving for movie productions by day and steering getaway vehicles for armed heists by night. Though a loner by nature, Driver can’t help falling in love with his beautiful neighbor Irene (Carey Mulligan), a vulnerable young mother dragged into a dangerous underworld by the return of her exconvict husband Standard (Oscar Isaac). After a heist intended to pay off Standard’s protection money spins unpredictably out of control, Driver finds himself driving defense for the girl he loves, tailgated by a syndicate of deadly serious criminals. But when he realizes that the gangsters are after more than the bag of cash in his trunk-that they’re coming straight for Irene and her son-Driver is forced to shift gears and go on offense.

travel

Thumbs Up!

2Imagine being in 23 countries in less than 12 months, spending approximately 2.5 Euros each a day, waiting for a lift for as long as 6 hours in the South-West of France with a thumbs up (sadly you arenâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;t lucky and have to sleep on the road for the night), getting a ride with anything that stops to give you a lift, which includes a boat in Senegal; This is just some of many exciting stories these two hitchhikers have to tell. On her way to a festival, Lora Vasileva and her friends gave a lift to a stranger named Evgeni; who had been hitchhiking around his country Bulgaria since he was fifteen years old. Two weeks later, Lora joined him on a worldwide hitch-hiking trip and as spontaneous and unplanned a decision as it sounded then, now she knows for sure that the decision was one of the best she had ever made. While on their hitch-hiking excursion around the world, I hosted them for two days in Kathmandu before they left for a trek to Everest Base Camp.

Why Hitch-Hiking? Hitch-hiking has become a way of life for us. We want to hitch-hike all around the world- see every mountain and

swim in every ocean. . We believe that hitch-hiking makes you open to everything and gradually makes you flexible enough to enjoy the differences between yourself and the people and culture you interact with. Itâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s not just routine holiday travel. Its exploring your inner self and the places you go

What are the countries you have traveled so far? We traveled along Serbia, Croatia, Slovenia, Italy, Switzerland, Germany, France, Belgium, Netherlands, Spain, Morocco, Mauritania, Senegal, Mali, Burkina Faso, Togo, Benin, Niger, Nigeria, Cameroon, Gabon, Nepal and India. But this is just the start. The list will go on and on.

How did you manage to fund your expedition so far? Well, we had saved some money from our jobs back in Bulgaria, which was enough to buy us food for a year. We searched for sponsors but it did not work out. But we do get some money through our friends who buy the photos we have taken. And (giggling), we also tried working in France. The job was to pick grapes for a vineyard but the language barrier took the job away before we got it.

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So is the language barrier a big problem while you are hitchhiking around the world? It is a problem, but apparently it’s not a big one. The primitive form of communication such as signs and expression is still helpful when it comes to traveling. We were offered a lift from some Chinese people in Italy, and it was tremendously difficult to explain to them the simple fact that we were from Bulgaria. On the entire trip we were compelled to use sign language, which was quite confusing but funny at the same time.

Have you ever starved while hitch hiking? (They look at each other and start talking in Bulgarian) In Switzerland, everything is very expensive. We couldn’t afford to eat anything good there. For a week, we had apples, raw food and seeds boiled in water. And it was only after we got to Germany that we actually had food by spending some money. Do you call that Starving? (I assumed that was a rhetorical question)

So any worst experiences other than that? Yes. Osman – a Rasta man, who invited us to stay at his house while we were in Dakar, the capital city of Senegal, turned out to be a very bad person. He convinced us to leave our backpacks in his room for the night, while we slept in our tent on his terrace. The next morning, when we went to get our visas to Burkina Faso, we found out that all our money was missing. After that, we learnt not to trust anyone blindly and we are more careful now. However, we are happy for everything we’ve been through, because without the hard moments we cannot appreciate the happy ones.

home. But I have to go on. I need to finish what I have started. I do miss them a lot. Evgeni - I miss them but not as much as Lora. I lived away from them even when I was in Bulgaria and maybe that’s why i don’t miss them so much.

So you only hitch hike on vehicles? The main element of hitch hiking is to stop a vehicle, wave hands and smile (with a thumbs up). As simple as that sounds, it requires a lot of patience. We hitchhike in any vehicle that stops. We avoid aeroplanes and trains but on rare occasions when we have no other choice, we have to pay to travel.

How did you find Nepal different from the countries you have traveled so far? We came to Nepal straight from Africa so the differences in culture did stun us for a moment. The first thing we really enjoyed was the Nepali food and of course the beautiful snow clad mountains. Nepal’s atmosphere is filled with an incredible amount of happiness, freedom and greenery. The people are really friendly and always helping us. We didn’t have to face a language barrier since almost everyone here can speak a little English. Even the villagers can communicate to us easily. Nepal is really special for us! It’s one of the places that will be hard to say goodbye to and we surely will come back again.

What are your further plans? We will be traveling around India for six months. We have yet to decide our destination after that. We celebrated our first anniversary of traveling around the world on 19th August. We are running out of money so we need to find more jobs on the way.

TEXT : Manjil Shrestha PHOTO : Lora Vasileva

Do you miss your family and friends back home? Lora- I left everyone and everything and started living on the road. Whenever I call my mom, she wants me to come back

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Donkeys enjoy their freedom without load

our tent is our home already one year...but is now falling apart www.verse.com.np

The Hindu temple Pashupati on the banks of the Bagmati River, where open-air cremations are made

View from the sky www.verse.com.np

Tibetan Yak

Fewa Taal and Pokhara www.verse.com.np

Buddha Air www.buddhaair.com

14 years of excellence...

www.verse.com.np Jawalakhel, Lalitpur, Nepal

Phone: +977-1-5521015 75

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writer’s block

EMOTIONAL ORDEAL TEXT : Shikha Bahety

The other day I had gone to my maid’s place. People who have worked at my place have practically seen me grow. And for some odd reasons they are always fond of me and vice versa. So this vacation when I got back home and when I met her she could not stop smiling for 5 mins continuously .I was wondering if there was something on my face or was I looking weird. Asking her she said it was really really nice seeing me after long. So was the same. It was nice getting back home after 1 year precisely 10 months this time.

with just you and your husband earnings? and what about your savings?Where do u sleep?? As long as my daughters are studying and my daily expenditure keeps rolling its enough for me. I was so touched by her thought that she being a helper and her husband being a security guard in some hospital knows the importance of education. She knows how will it help her kids to grow of they have an education, their future being so bright. And about her sleep she said there are times that we sleep under the cot.

So yea I was talking about my visit to her place. So after couple of days she just asked me if I would visit her room. I was pretty glad and wanted to find out where does she stay. So one day after her work we went to her room. I do travel in public transports Safa tempo but avoid travelling in micro bus. So me and her got onto the micro bus and there was just one seat so she offered me the seat. I happily squeezed in between 2 guys with smelly socks. I think I was sitting half in the air. When I looked at her she was standing with that smiling face. I really like this thing about her.

She offered me coffee and omlettes to eat which I had to refuse as I had just eaten my lunch. I gave the kids the sweets. The younger daughter took it outside and gave it to all her friends and neighbours. I kept looking at her and thought What a big heart the kid has?? She finished the whole packet. I kept quiet and after a few conversations she showed me the place around. She told me how they have to fight everyday for filling a bucket of water. And there are days when the water does not come at all. Whenever we go out of our rooms we lock our rooms and then go out. She said we has to keep her things secured or else theres no one to blame. She told me that whenever I happen to go abroad for my further studies I should call her there and she will start earning and her family can have a happy life ahead.

We got off the tempo and started walking towards her room. Her kids as soon as they saw her ran towards her. They were dressed very untidily with that innocent look on their face were asking their mom who I was. I had gotten sweets for them and pencils. She took me to her room where her sister in law was studying. It was a one bedroom hall kitchen all in one. The place was all covered with black smoke in the wall and was very dark .I could not believe my eyes when I saw the stove right next to her bed. And the closet was in front of her bed. When I asked her how many people stayed in this place. She said 4 adults with 2 kids and some guests are there mostly all the time. I was taken by surprise. I said how do you manage to take care of everything

After half an hour I bid them goodbye and started walking towards the main road. She insisted on coming along and seeing her, her daughter also followed. I sat on the tempo and waved them. My eyes were watery and I felt so helpless. From far away I could see the smile on her face. That’s when I learnt LIFE DOES NOT COME THAT EASY TO EVERYONE!! AND WHOM IT COMES SO EASY DO NOT VALUE IT.

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art space

Ashesh Maharjan http://amaharjan.deviantart.com/