Photo Essays
2 MIN READ
The painstaking work needed to get the Rato Machindranath on the road has already been done. But the festival will only take place once the government and Lalitpur’s locals agree on the jatra date
The rains have already come this year. But the god who brings the rains has remained stuck in Pulchowk. In most years, the Rato Machindranath chariot would have already done the rounds of Lalitpur by the seventh month of the Nepali lunar calendar. But this year, although the chariot has been built and the artisans have readied the chariot for the Rato Machindranath festival, the god still remains stuck in stasis. The people of Lalitpur would like to pull the chariot, but the government is worried about large throngs of people congregating in the middle of the Covid crisis. The festival date has been postponed twice already. There is now talk that the chariot will finally trundle through Lalitpur’s streets on the first day of Bhadau.
In this photo feature, I document the tireless work done by Lalitpur’s artisans in getting Machindranath ready to shower this town with blessings--blessings we so desperately need.
:::::::::::
Laxmi Prasad Ngakhusi Photographer Laxmi Prasad Ngakhusi has been documenting the Kathmandu Valley for over 15 years.
Features
6 min read
The Record introduces a new mini-series where we speak to artists from various fields and ask them about the projects they worked on during the lockdown and the pandemic.
COVID19
News
3 min read
A daily summary of Covid19 related developments that matter
Explainers
Longreads
10 min read
Comrade Netra Bikram Chand ‘Biplab’ and Prime Minister Oli are both in difficult positions and they are both looking for a way out.
COVID19
News
5 min read
A daily summary of all Covid19 related developments that matter
COVID19
Features
3 min read
With people venturing out more, and with the festival season just around the corner, Nepal is staring at even bleaker days in the very near future
Perspectives
7 min read
The longstanding ‘park-people’ conflict surrounding Chitwan National Park, which includes instances of gross human rights violations against the Tharu community, is a story that is often buried in the garb of conservation.
Culture
Books
5 min read
The entries of My Diary, by former ambassador Jaya Raj Acharya, reveal the endlessly inquisitive and deeply moral mind of the author as a high school student coming of age
Explainers
4 min read
The army’s role in the procurement of medical supplies is just one instance of its expanding reach in national administration