| ashu |
Posted
on 29-Apr-02 01:21 AM
Hi all,
Though I do NOT have time these days to engage in daily
debates/discussions here on sajha.com, I think what I would like to
do -- on an IRregular basis -- is to bring interesting/inspiring/intriguing
Nepalis and their work to your collective attention.
These interesting/inspiring/intriguing Nepalis -- from ALL social, educational and economic backgrounds -- would be people in Nepal (drawn from the 25-40 age bracket) with whom I have had the good fortune to be either personal friends
or professional colleagues, and who I think should be known more widely for
their work.
(So, by definition, these "profiles" would be informal, short and subjective,
and NOT your standard deeply-researched, all-sides-covered The New
Yorker profile.)
This way, my hope is that sajha.com visitors, most of whom live and work in the US, will get to know fellow-Nepalis -- people like themselves -- who are doing good/interesting/intriguing/inspiring and even challenging work right here in
Nepal in various fields, and hopefully that knowledge will create more learning
from one another, more appreciation of the good stuff that is happening in Nepal, more networking and all that good, good stuff.
Well, that's the idea.
Let's see how it goes.
So, first, about this friend, who I have known for the last six years.
Rabindra Puri, 33, is a tenth-generation Bhaktapur resident who is fluent in
Newari, Nepali, German and English languages.
He holds three undergrad degrees (in law, commerce and fine arts) from
Nepali colleges, and an advanced degree in 'development studies' from
Germany.
An artist/architect by temperament and habit, Rabindra worked for several
years at the now world-famous Patan Museum . . . right from the beginning,
when the Museum was being built.
For the last one year, though, Rabindra has been making a name for himself in Nepal and abroad for his work on an old, dilapidated, beetle-infested, 'chicken-shed' house in Bhanktapur, and turning it-- in the course of 18 months and working with traditional masons, bricklayers and woodcarvers in Bhaktapur -- into an
marvellous specimen of comfortable, elegant yet stunningly simple/habitable Newari architecture.
Rabindra's claim is that such architecture IS quite affordable for middle- to
upper-class Nepalis (who continue to build, alas, the usual cement ko monstrosities), and Rabindra's very keen to promote traditional Bhaktapur ko masons, carpenters, wood-carvers and help them keep their occupations alive
and relevant.
To this end, Rabindra has won a few contracts to renovate old, brick houses in Kathmandu and to make new ones that promote traditional architecture and the arts, without being, you know, stuffily retro in outlook.
Be sure to stop by his house when you are next in Bhaktapur.
Visitors are welcome, and will be served delicious Newari khaja.
Read more about his house:
http://www.himalayanttj.com/nepal-model.htm
You can contact Rabindra via email: puri@enet.com.np
oohi
ashu
ktm,nepal
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| ashu |
Posted
on 29-Apr-02 09:40 PM
khali-ji,
BBC ko journalist Rabindra Mishra has written in his latest essay (in Nepal magazine) that most Nepalis (abroad) do not want to hear praises of their
(former) friends and colleagues and other contemporaries who are working,
living and doing very well in Nepal.
These Nepalis abroad, says Rabindra Mishra, always find a reason or two to
sniff and snort at others' achievments.
I do not know whether that applies to you, but I want to tell you that I
am very proud of my friends and think highly of them and other Nepalis
who have pursued something . . . anything with passion and dedication.
That is why, if singing their genuine goon-gaan in public in an effort to let more people know about them smacks of chakadi to you, well, so be it.
Rabindra Puri, for one, counts on me, as I count on him, for no-nonsense ideas, criticisms and discussions that help us understand what traditonal architecture
is all about and whether the pursuit of it is cost-effective.
Thank you.
Thanks Biswo for your words.
oohi
ashu
ktm,nepal
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