PAPER IX: 539: REGIONAL AND POSTCOLONIAL STUDIES

Eng. 539.1: Nepal Studies

FM:100

Teaching Hours: 180

This course studies Nepali literary and cultural texts in relation to their social, political and
historical contexts. It comprises of seminal essays about the cultural politics of Nepal, readings
in Nepali English literature, Nepali literature in translation and folklore. The course also offers
readings that seek to theorize and express multicultural experiences of Nepal.

Unit I: History, Politics and Culture

John Whelpton: Jung Bahadur in Europe.
Roderick Chalmers: “Pundits and Pulp Fiction: Popular publishing and the birth of Nepali
Print Capitalism in Banares.”
Karl –Heinz Krämer: “The Janjati and the Nepali State: Aspects of Identity and
Integration.” From Ethnic Revival and Religious Turmoil.
Richard Burghart: "The Formation of the Concept of Nation State in Nepal." From The
Conditions of Listening.
Dor Bahadur Bista: "Introduction," "The Caste System in Nepal" and "Conclusion."
Pratyoush Onta: “Activities in a Fossil State: Balkrishna Sama and the Improvisation of
Nepali identity.”
Mark Leichy: “The Social Practice of Cinema and Video Viewing in Kathmandu.” From
Suitably Modern.
Ingemar Grandin: “Music Under Development: Children’s Songs, Artists and the
Panchayat State.”
James Sharrock: “Nepali Blogging and Democrary.”
Michael Hutt: “The Nepali Literature of the 1990 Democracy Movement and its
Aftermath.” From Eloquent Hills: Essays on Nepali Literature.

Unit II: Nepali English Writing

Laxmi Prasad Devkota: Shakuntala
Padma Devkota: “Swimming the Unknown Depths” and “Empty Nest.” From Of
Nepalese Clay
Shreedhar Lohani: “Children, throw away your toys!” and “Existence.” From Of
Nepalese Clay.
Basanta Lohani: “The New Identity.” From Of Nepalese Clay.
D. B. Gurung: “The Diary of a Threatened One.” From An Other Voice.
Mohan Lohani: “In the Shadows of Death.” From Of Nepalese Clay.
Hrishikesh Upadhyaya: “Kathmandu Twilight.” From Of Nepalese Clay.
Rabi Thapa: “Night out in Kathmandu.” From Nothing to Declare.
Smriti Ravindra: “Old Iron Trunks.” From New Nepal New Voices.
Sushma Joshi: “Law and Order.” From New Nepal New Voices.
Madan K Limbu: “Downpour.” From New Nepal New Voices.
Manju Kanchuli: “”Regiment Training in an open ground.” From New Nepal New Voices.
Sunil Nepali: “The Interview.” From New Nepal New Voices.
Sanjeev Uprety: “Heroes and Onions.” From New Nepal New Voices.
Ammaraj Joshi: “The Bond of Blood.” From A Night’s Drama.
Kumar Shrestha: “Ceremony.” From Lonely Hearts.
Archana Thapa: “Introduction.” From Telling a Tale.
Geeta Khadka: “Window to my Heart.” From Telling a Tale.
Saguna Shah: “Memoir of a Sano Maharani and the pain within.” From Telling a Tale.
Sunaina Sherchen: “The Last Cigarette.” From Telling a Tale.
Sangeeta Thapa: “All that remains.” From Telling a Tale.
Ashmina Ranjit: “Yes, it’s spelled with sh.” From Telling a Tale.
Swastika Shrestha: “Spinning Dreams for Life.” From Telling a Tale.
Samrat Upadhyaya: “The Good Shopkeeper.” From Arresting God in Kathmandu.
Manjushree Thapa: Seasons of Flight.

Unit III: Nepali Literature in Translation

Parijat: Blue Mimosa
Rajeshwar Devkota: Journey’s End
Abhi Subedi: Fire in the Monastery
Dhruba Chandra Gautam: “Hem Subba Ate Pan.” From The Country is Yours.
Dhruba Sapkota: “By the Shores of an Imaginary River.” From The Country is Yours.
Maya Thakuri “The Trap.” From The Country is Yours.
Narayan Dhakal: “The City Machinery.”From The Country is Yours.
Parshu Pradhan: “Flashback.” From The Country is Yours.
Manu Brazaki: “The Weather will be Clear today and tomorrow.” From The Country is Yours.
Indra Bahadur Rai: “A Window.” From The Country is Yours.
Gopal Prasad Rimal: “A Mother’s Dream.” From Dancing Soul of Mount Everest.
Mohan Koirala: “Half Cloaked with a coat.” From Dancing Soul of Mount Everest.
Bhim Birag: “Those lost in their own Search.” From Dancing Soul of Mount Everest.
Haribhakta Katuwal: “What a life is this life.”From Dancing Soul of Mount Everest.
Bhupi Sherchan: “An Inflamed Candle.” From Dancing Soul of Mount Everest.
Ishwar Ballabh: “Preparation for a Valediction.” From Dancing Soul of Mount Everest.
Banira Giri: “I, A Frayed Poster.” From Dancing Soul of Mount Everest.
Sarubhakta: “The Rocks.” From Dancing Soul of Mount Everest.
Tulasi Diwasa: “A Travalogue.” From Dancing Soul of Mount Everest.
Krishna Sen Ichchuk: “Aaitee!’ From Dancing Soul of Mount Everest.
Dinesh Adhikari: “The Pleasure of walking alone.” From Dancing Soul of Mount Everest.
Momila: “Unattainable Heights.” From Dancing Soul of Mount Everest.

Unit IV: Mythology and Folklore

Keshar Lall: Folk Tales from Nepal: The Stolen Images and Other Stories.
Ram Dayal Rakesh: Folk Tales from Mithila.
Karna Sakya and Linda Griffith: “The Tale of the Goddess of Tales.” From Tales of
Kathmandu.
“The Fox who Saved the Priest.” From Tales of Kathmandu.
“The Tragic Love of the Uttis Tree.”From Tales of Kathmandu.
“Chandra Mukhi in the Land of Impossible Tasks.” From Tales of Kathmandu.
“The Right Husband.” From Tales of Kathmandu.
“Confrontation with a Kichikinny.” From Tales of Kathmandu.
“The Story of a Monkey Lady.” From Tales of Kathmandu.
“The Tale of Seven Sisters.” From Tales of Kathmandu.
“Taming Husband.” From Tales of Kathmandu.
“The Greedy couple.” From Tales of Kathmandu.
“Chattu, the Young Farmer.” From Tales of Kathmandu.
“Looking for a Husband.” From Tales of Kathmandu.
Tulasi Diwasa. Folk Tales from Nepal.

Unit V: Multicultural Nepali Texts

Arjun Gunaratne. “Tharu – State relations in Nepal and India.” From The Tarai: History,
Society, Environment.
David N. Gellner: “Caste, Communalism and Communism’ Newars and the Nepalese
State.” From Nationalism and Ethnicity in Nepal.
Ben Campbell: “The Heavy Loads of Tamang Identity.” From Nationalism and Ethnicity
in Nepal.
Steven Folmer: “Problems of Identity for Hill Dalits and Nepal’s Nationalist Project.”
From Nationalism and Ethnic Conflict in Nepal.
Claire Burkert: “Defining Maithili Identity: Who is in Charge?” From Nationalism and
Ethnicity in Nepal.
Mollica Dastider: “Refusing to Choose: The Muslim Madhesis and the co-existence of
Religious and Regional Identity in Nepal’s Tarai.” From Nationalism and Ethnic
Conflict in Nepal.

Alessandra Campoli: Ritual Art of the Kingdom of Mithila : Traditional Paintings by

Janakpur Women in Nepal.
Tirtha Shrestha: “Time and the Hill” and “The Women at the Water Tap.” Dancing Soul
of Mount Everest.
Pratisara Sayami: “In the Shadows of Paddy Stalks.” From The Country is Yours.
Toya Gurung: “History cant last in this Country.” From The Country is Yours.
Bairagi Kainla: “The Mountain.” From The Country is Yours.
Bhagyanath Gupta: “A Pop Drama.” From The Country is Yours.
C.M Bishwakarma: “Remembrance.” From The Country is Yours.
Shiva Kumar Khaling: “Will you come back to the Village?” From The Country is Yours.
Sulochana Manandhar: “An Effort at Liberation.” From The Country is Yours.
Bimal Nibha: “The Shirt with only one Sleeve.” From The Country is Yours.
Srawan Mukarung: “The Antique Man.” Dancing Soul of Mount Everest.
Vidhyapati: “Krishna Purbbaraga” and “Radha Purbbaraga.” From Love Songs of
Vidhyapati.

Testing Scheme: Each unit carries equal marks.

Prescribed Textbooks:
Bista, Dor Bahadur. Fatalism and Development. Kolkata: Orient Longman.
Burkhart, Richard. The Conditions of Listening. Delhi: Oxford, 2008. 226-260, 261-277,
300-318, 362-408.
Campoli, Alessandra. Ritual Art of the Kingdom of Mithila : Traditional Paintings by
Janakpur Women in Nepal. Kathmandu: Vajraj Publications, 2008. (whole book)
Chalmers, Roderick. “Pundits and Pulp Fiction: Popular Publishing and the Birth of
Nepali Print Capitalism in Banares.” SINHAS 7(1) June 2002: 35-97.
Devkota, Laxmi Prasad: Shakuntala. Kathmandu: Ratna Pustak Bhandar, 2007. (whole book)
Devkota, Padma.“Jatayu” and “Empty Nest” Of Nepalese Clay Issue 11, April 2009: 4-5.
Devkota, Rajeshwar. Journey’s End. Trans. Hrishikesh Upadhyaya. New Delhi:
Adadrsha Books, 2011. (whole book)
Diwasa, Tulasi. Folk Tales from Nepal. New Delhi: Publications Division, 2003. (whole book)
Grandin, Ingemar. “Music Under Development: Children’s Songs, Artists and the
Panchayat State.” SINHAS 10(2) December 2005: 255-293.
Gellner, David, Joanna Pfaff-Czarnecka and John Whelpton’s Nationalism and Ethnicity
in Nepal. Kathmandu: Vajra Publications, 1997.
Gunaratne, Arjun. “Tharu--State Relations in Nepal and India.” The Tarai: History,
Society, Environment. Kathmandu: Himal books, 2011.
Gurung, D.B. “The Diary of a Threatened One.” An Other Voice: English Literature
from Nepal. Eds. Deepak Thapa and Kesang Tseten. Kathmandu: Martin Chautari, 2002.
Hutt, Michal. Eloquent Hills: Essays on Nepali Literature. Kathmandu: Martin Chautari,
2012.
Joshi, Ammaraj. A Night’s Drama. New Delhi: Adarsha Books, 2008.
Joshi, Momila. Ed. Dancing Soul of Mount Everest: Selected Modern Nepali Poems.
Kathmandu: Nepal Kalasahitya Dot Com, 2011.
Joshi, Sushmaand Ajit Baral. Eds. New Nepal New Voices: An Anthology of Short
Stories. New Delhi: Rupa 2008.
Karl –Heinz Krämer. “The Janjati and the Nepali State: Aspects of Identity and
Integration.”Lecomte-Tilouine and &Dollfus. Ethnic Revival and Religious
Turmoil: Identities and Representations in the Himalayas. Oxford: OUP, 2003.
Lall, Keshar. Folk Tales from Nepal: The Stolen Images and Other stories. Kathmandu:
Ratna Pustak Bhandar, 1995. (whole book)
Lawoti, Mahendra and Susan Hangen. Eds. Nationalism and Ethnic Conflict in Nepal.
New York: Routledge, 2013.
Lecomte-Tilouine and Dollfus. Ed. Ethnic Revival and Religious Turmoil: Identities and
Representations in the Himalayas. Oxford: OUP, 2003.
Leitchy, Mark. Suitably Modern. Kathmandu: Martin Chautari, 2006.
Lohani, Basanta. “The New Identity.” Of Nepalese Clay issue 18, October 2012, 16.
Lohani, Mohan. “In the Shadows of Death” Of Nepalese Clay Issue 19, April 2013, 11.
Lohani, Shreedhar. “Children, throw away your toys!” and “Where Joy Dwells” From Of
Nepalese Clay Issue 19, April 2013: 17-18.
Onta, Pratyoush: “Activities in a Fossil State: Balkrishna Sama and the Improvisation of
Nepali Identity.” SINHAS 2(1) June 1997: 69-102.
Parijat. Blue Mimosa. Trans. Tanka Vilas Varya. Kathmandu: Orchid Books, 2010. (whole book)
Rakesh, Ram Dayal. Folk Tales from Mithila. New Delhi: Nirala, 1996. (whole book)
Sakya, Karna and Linda Griffith. Tales of Kathmandu: Folktales from the Himalayan
Kingdom of Nepal. Kathmandu: Mandala Publications, 2005.
Sharrock, James. “Nepali Blogging and Democrary.” SINHAS 12(1) June 2007: 55-94.
Subedi, Abhi Subedi. Fire in the Monastery. Kathmandu: Across Publications, 2003.
Thakura, Vidhyapati, Deben Bhattacharya and W G Archer. Love Songs of Vidhyapati.
Ann Arbor: Grove Press, 1979.
Thapa, Archana. Ed. Telling a Tale. Kathmandu: Akshar Creations, 2010.
Thapa, Manjushree. Ed. This Country is Yours. Kathmandu: The Printhouse, 2009.
Thapa, Manjushree. Seasons of Flight. Delhi: Penguin, 2010. (whole book)
Upadhyaya, Hrishikesh. “Kathmandu Twilight” From Of Nepalese Clay.
Wagle, Narayan. Palpasa Café. Kathmandu: NepaLaya, 2011.
Whelpton, John. Jung Bahadur in Europe. Kathmandu: Sahayogi Press, 1983. (whole book)