I was reading one of the Nepali news portal www.myrepublica.com and there was one letter which caught my attention. Well, before you go what was on the letter, you need to get background to understand the contents of letter. Since many of my readers are non-nepalis, lemme give you a bit picture of the present situation. CPN (communist party of Nepal) Maoist is in the power after they won elections last year. (Remember, they are the same ones who fought bitter bloody war with state for 10 years to establish communist republic.) They promised big changes to climb to the power.
But now their youth wing Young Communist League is thrashing everyone who opposes them and their mother party. Not only their youth wing, their other wings like trade union, students wing etc. all are doing same. They even attacked press under the pretext of labour’s right. They have forcibly closed most of the industries and god-knows-what else. PM always promises changes but change term seems to be elusive term.
In this context, one journalist Rupak D Sharma wrote an open letter to Premier Prachanda a.k.a the feirce one after reading Aravind Adiga’s The White Tiger.
Think about it, Mr Premier
Dear Comrade Prachanda (aka Prime Minister Pushpa Kamal Dahal),
Laal Salam! (Red Greetings?)
I just finished reading Aravind Adiga’s The White Tiger and was kind of inspired by his writing. I know I should have done that long time back—I mean read the book—but, you know, time constraints and all that stuff. Anyways, since I’m done with it now I thought I might as well use my free time writing something to my own prime minister like Aravind did to Chinese Premier Wen Jiabao. Now please don’t start looking at your watch, my letter won’t be an entire 320-page novel like his.
Before I start I would like to ask you one thing though. Have you read his novel? I bet you have. After all it won this year’s Man Booker Prize.
So which part of the novel annoyed you the most? I guess it was the same part, isn’t it Mr Premier? Yes, the part in which he describes all Nepali girls in India as prostitutes. Well he has even called one of our security guards, Ram Bahadur, a ‘sly’ figure. I did manage to take this as a joke but when he introduced our sisters as ‘whores’ the smile on my face, brought by his witty sarcasms all the while, turned into a frown. If Aravind were around me at that time, I would have whacked him—like your boys do all the time to those who stand against them. Am I correct Mr Premier?
It is really upsetting, you know, Mr Prachanda, when someone describes Nepalis like that. Well, I won’t deny that none of our girls are into that profession in India but at least he shouldn’t have generalized.
Wow, is this what you call the nationalistic fervor!
I know I should not let it rule me. But I cannot help it. I even tried to console myself saying that Aravind had even made fun of his own fellow Indians from the South, calling them ‘negros’ and former slaves of North Indians. But that didn’t help me. I bet all the Nepalis who read the novel will feel the way I do.
And don’t you think it’s natural Mr Prime Minister. Even Americans who hated their President, George W Bush, were against that Iraqi journalist who threw a pair of shoes at him.
By the way, Mr Premier, did you notice that Booker Prize winner of 2006 – what was her name… ah Kiran Desai — did the same thing. I mean, she also tried to discredit all the Nepalis living in Darjeeling through her novel, The Inheritance of Loss. Probably you should talk to the panel of judges who finalize the name for Bookers Prize winner and find out whether one of criteria for winning the prize is whacking Nepalis. If that’s true then I’d be a f***ing joke, wouldn’t it. (By the I way, I don’t have the habit of using foul language. It’s Aravind who taught me this. And he’s repeated this phrase over and over again in his novel.)
Well before more of the Indians try to smack us some more, let me tell you a little secret. But before that let me introduce myself to you. I’m a journalist and I’m currently based in Bangkok. My colleagues here come from Malaysia, the Philippines and of course Thailand. During my stay here, I’ve also made couple of friends from Singapore, Viet Nam, Cambodia and Laos. Mr Premier, do you know how my friends from Southeast Asia know Indians? They know them as people who are cunning, who can really know how to play office politics and who don’t live up to their promises. Suddenly I found out that the term Indian is no longer a noun here, it’s an adjective – adjective to describe people who are cunning, who can play office politics and who don’t live up to their promises. So next time you hear somebody say Indian John – don’t assume him to be a John from India. You should take him as John – who may be from the US, the UK or even Nepal – who is cunning, who can play office politics and who won’t live up to his promises.
Another secret, Mr Premier. One of my Filipino friends was recently duped by an Indian. Both of them had a verbal agreement for a job.
But when the payday came that Indian paid him less than half of what he had agreed on. My hardworking Filipino friend has promised never to work for Indians and now tries to stay as far away from them. Probably he’s contracted Indo-phobia.
I really feel bad for all the Indians now. I actually studied in India for around three years and I have some very good Indian friends. And they are not cunning; they don’t play politics; and they live up to their promises. But because of very few unethical people, they’ll have to pay the price as well.
Talking about someone else paying the price for someone else’s deeds, Mr Prachanda, so what do you could be the solution to this problem. I know your blood must be boiling by now and may be you’re ready to send of your boys to whack Aravind and Kiran. But will sending your boys stop them from speaking? I don’t think so. Instead, it’ll only encourage them to scream some more. So why not we do some soul searching and find out where we went wrong. What do you say?
It’s true that Nepalis’ image has tarnished over the years. Yes, we are still known as brave and hard working people. But on top of that we’re also known as illegal migrant workers, drug peddlers and even prostitutes (like Aravind said, if that’s true). But all these titles were given to us because of the mistakes committed by a few. I know even these people who are illegal immigrants and who carry drugs didn’t do it for pleasure. Our country’s inability to create decent-paying jobs forced them to do so.
Some months ago, when I was talking to Dr Sanduk Ruit — while he was here in Bangkok – he said that Nepalis have to work twice as much as people from developed or developing worlds to prove their worth. And that’s true Mr Premier. People don’t trust us easily nowadays because we are no longer known as Nepalis of the past. Even if they trust us they trust us for those 3D—dirty, dangerous and demeaning—jobs. So what do you make of that Mr Premier.
By the way, how did you come to power. I wasn’t there in the country during the elections but if I’m not mistaken many voted for your party because you had promised change. You probably did not say “yes we can” like Barack Obama did, but you said something similar, if I’m not wrong. However, today what are we seeing – your boys threatening people, coercing people to do what they don’t want to do, and if not whacking them.
Another secret, Mr Premier. I also liked to whack people. But I was in Grade 7 at that time. Copying those Western and Indian movies, me and couple of my friends had even formed a gang in the school. And you know where we used to have our gang fights. In one corner of the bird’s section in Lalitpur’s zoo. But that was in Grade 7, Mr Premier. I guess your boys who stormed Himal Media and couple of other firms in the recent past are not in Grade 7.
And if they are so fond of smacking people why not organize fights every week or every month, say for example in the zoo. Your boys can call whoever they want and vent their anger in the ring. And the money generated from the ticket sales can go to the national coffer.
Hedge fund managers—battered by global economic slowdown—recently organized such a fight in Hong Kong and they raised around US$129,000. Seriously. I’m not joking. May be we can discuss more about holding frequent fights later.
Well, I don’t want to take more of your precious time. But before I end my letter, I would like to remind you again about the need to give a face lift to the image of Nepal and the Nepalis. Think about it Mr Premier.
Yours Truly,
Rupak D Sharma
Journalist
PS: Please give my regards to your wife and son.
********************
P.S. I haven’t read The White Tiger. Has anyone?
P.S. 2 : I really hope that this letter reached to our PM and he badly needs this reminder.
P.S. 3: I love my Indian Friends and I know they are not stereotypes. 
P.S. 4, my header image is also courtesy of myrepublica.com (of course i took it myself though 
). Photographer is, Bikash Karki. Thanks to him
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