Story about struggle

Salik Shah   | Talking-Points | September 14, 2009 at 6:52 am         Print

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Gravity. The force that doesn’t want us to fly; which fears we might have a fatal fall if we do, so doesn’t permit the heavens to separate our feet from the clay. Kathmandu is that ground reality which beckons me night and day, and which I pretend to have already escaped. I thought I must first invent a pair of robust wings to defy gravity and deny that part of me. In rage, I sought to violate all rules and desired to soar the limits of the unknown blue in profound solitude and meaningful silence. But I didn’t want struggle. Never liked it.

People expect that. They expect a hero’s story. I am now in the streets like I had wanted to be—and this is not romantic. It is physical, yes sir, my struggle. I feel the great void in my breast, though the flight is not mere wings. We must endure the trap of dreams and witness a series of heroes in this league, falling and rising, rising and falling. I do not like to talk about Nepali films. Nepal is not a country known for its cinema. “Our film and television industry lacks talent,” says a Nepali friend, who is doing a cinematography course at Whistling Woods, “Nepali film directors have continued to make films despite a thousand hurdles, which is something I am proud of, but it will take time and talent to change things for better.”

The national television station has been showing Hindi films every Saturday for years now because advertisers from local and multinational companies do no trust Nepali films. “Things will change only if we return and make films there,” four people tell me everyday. The government ignores Nepali film industry since they do not know how to help improve the quality of our films. The cultural dominance of Hindi can be strongly felt across major towns and cities in many countries— Nepal is no exception. But that doesn’t mean Nepali films are not seen. They have their audiences. But the irony is many Nepali directors are making soaps in Mumbai. Many Nepalis are employed by television channels here. It is a fact that Nepali directors are also making Bhojpuri hits. After a documentary for National Geographic, I have been doing a few episodes here and there. Some films have stalled. Some serials are to take off. I am doing rounds of people. I didn’t want this, all that is part of ‘struggle.’ A wish to avoid the obvious pained me. I lacked manners to be patient. I didn’t want to be naked.

I will tell you why.

There was once a young man who believed in the existence of dwarfs and fairies. He lived in a valley below some white and green mountains. When people asked him how he knew that the lands of dreams really existed, he would say he just knew it. They called him names. They wanted evidence. He had only his faith. It was with this faith that he set out of the valley and crossed thick forests, passed through strong currents and traveled under a scorching sun to cross the plains. He broke bones, got wounded and suffered a heartburn in the course of the journey. But he was determined to reach the land of dreams to find the fanciful creatures. A year and a half had already passed when he found himself near a sea.

The night he arrived near the sea, exhausted and injured, he knew immediately it was here that he would find himself and realize his dreams. He wanted to begin the search without any delays but his eyes burned and his body ached so much that he thought it would be better to get a few hours sleep till daybreak. When he woke up, he found himself locked inside a cage. There were strange people staring at him and talking things he couldn’t grasp. Some looked at him in awe, some in anger and some looked greatly amused. He noticed every man and every woman in the place had a key to his cage.

Different people treated him differently. He felt humiliated. He was enraged. He felt loved. Later towards dusk, an old man approached the captive and said in the language familiar to him that they were willing to set him free on one condition. The people in this land sought only one thing for the key to his freedom. They demanded Struggle from him. He was relieved, he thought that was easy. He told them about himself and that he had reached their land after a great hardship. They didn’t believe him. They told him that they had heard the same story from so many. He said he wasn’t lying. But nobody cared. They said he must produce some proof.

Now if he wished to convince the people, he had no other way than to exhibit the wounds which he sustained during his journey. He bared his chest to show the wounds. Everybody recognized them and said, “These are red roses.” The dreamer closed his eyes for a moment in disbelief. He had failed to convince the people. The natives looked pleased. They didn’t tell him the reason. They knew soon he would have his own key—his struggle had already begun. He also knew it.

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Trivia:

The Nepali film industry was closely linked with the Bombay film industry for many years. Maitighar was the first Nepali film to be produced under private banner in 1966. (In Nepali, a married woman’s mother’s house is called ‘maitighar.’) Mala Singh acted in the film opposite to C.P. Lohani, her future husband, in this classic. The veteran music maestro Jaidev scored music for the film. Lata Mangeshkar was to sing her first Nepali song for Maitighar. The song was penned by late King Mahendra Bir Bikram Shah Dev. Asha Bhosle, Usha Mangeshkar and Manna Dey also lent their voices for the film songs.—Wikipedia

I hope you’ll enjoy this song: Ma Pyaar Bechi dinchhu