Kathmandu: Nandu Khatiwada does not have much in common with ‘Rato Aar Chandrasurje’ written by Gopal Prasad Rimal during the anti-royal campaign.
He fled from Bhutan at the age of one and a half and came to Nepal with his parents. After he turned 19, he came to America under the Refugee Resettlement Program. Now that he is 31 years old, if there is anything he longs for, it is Nepaliness.
On this Saturday evening, Nandu was seen dancing with equal joy in the crowd of people who were waving the Nepali national flag and jumping around the hall.
“It is not possible to understand how important Nepathya, based on Nepali identity, is in my life,” he was saying, “Even though I am older than my father, I could not hold back tears today seeing the energy of Amrut Dai, who sings folk songs and dances chhamchmi.”
Growing up in Khudunabari, Jhapa, Nandu Nepathya’s songs are as dear to him as bhajans to religious people.
“For two hours, I felt like I was sitting in meditation,” he added, who came with his wife, “this evening, I experienced an important moment in my life.”
Throughout the concert, the entire ‘Kemba Live’ hall was filled with cheering like Nandu and was filled with sound, light and the excitement of the packed crowd.
After completing the previous two concerts in the western part of America, the third performance of Nepathya, who arrived in Columbus, the capital of the Midwestern state of Ohio, has also been completed in a grand manner.
The city is named in memory of the famous 15th century explorer Christopher Columbus. In this 200-year-old city, according to the data of the last two and a half decades, the population of immigrants from Asian and South American countries is increasing significantly compared to other races.
The largest number of Nepali-speaking Bhutanese refugees were brought to the United States under the resettlement program, with nearly one-third of them residing in this state. Apart from that, Nepalis have a significant presence here. Locals say that with the increase in the number of immigrants, the search for their own identity and culture is gradually increasing in proportion.
“I also found that some of our Nepalis did not teach their children Nepali in America,” Amrit said emotionally in the middle of the concert.
The concert started at exactly eight o’clock in the evening as per the scheduled time. The performance started with ‘Koshiko Pani Yo Zindgani’ and progressed through Nepathya’s all-time hits like ‘Shirphool Shiraima’, ‘Naintal’ and ‘Pachasai Vaishma’. The program reached its climax with the songs ‘Resham’, ‘Talko Pani’ and ‘Rato Aar Chandrasurje’ performed in the last wave.
“It turned out to be an unforgettable evening that will never be forgotten,” Manoj Sivakoti wrote on Facebook along with a group photo holding the Nepali flag, “What a strong performance.”
Prakash Joshi arrived in Columbus with his American wife after driving seven hours from St. Louis, Missouri to see this concert.
“A few years ago, when I tried to watch Nepathya’s concert at Patan Durbar Square, I had to turn back because of the huge crowd,” said Joshi, a software engineer who lives in Mahendranagar, Nepal.
While he was saying this, his wife Sy McKenzie, who works in program management, added, ‘I have watched many shows in my life, worked on projects, but the energy felt between the artists and the audience is a rare experience. ‘The energy and vibes were amazing.’ As she was leaving, she said, ‘I see more tension than smiles on the faces of many people living in America, I saw that this performance brought smiles to many faces and joy in their hearts.
Meena Kaini, who has worked as a journalist for a long time in Nepal, had collected many Nepali experience before.
“When I am listening to these songs and Amrit Gurung is touching them, I feel that I have reached a different part of Nepal,” added Meena, who also watched the Nepathya concert in Toronto last year.
She said that these songs are becoming more meaningful for her as she has been living abroad lately.
“I can guess the popularity of this band just by looking at the reaction of the audience in the hall,” was the reaction of Joy Pasternak, Production Manager of Kemba Hall, “I also enjoyed this concert with the energetic view of the audience singing all the songs from the stage and shaking their hands to the beat during every song.”
In the concert, lead singer Amrit Gurung was assisted by Dhruv Lama on the drumset, Subin Shakya on the bass guitar, Niraj Gurung on the guitar, Shanti Rayamazhi on the Madal and Dineshraj Regmi on the keyboard.
“During the concert, when I saw the wave of the national flag being waved by the audience, thorns were growing in my body,” was the response of Lal Chauhan of the organizing team, “We the organizers are proud to present Nepathya successfully and to be the medium of this broad, civilized and grand musical flow among Nepali speakers. It feels like a dream come true, for which I am grateful to the band.’
After the successful completion of the previous three concerts of the US tour, Nepathya will now depart for Texas for the fourth performance.
After the successful completion of the previous three concerts of the US tour, Nepathya will now depart for Texas for the fourth performance. After 6 years, Nepathya is going to be presented again in Dallas, the most densely populated city of the state. This time, the band is performing at the Toyota Music Factory there. The band is determined to provide the Texas audience with an evening of fun on August 24th at this huge and magnificent venue.
This year’s series of US tours will take a break after Dallas, with concerts in New York, Maryland and finally Harrisburg, Pennsylvania.