ATTENDANCE: Chargé d’affaires at Nepal’s Embassy to Qatar Ganesh Prasad Dhakal, left, along with other dignitaries at the event.
SUPER STAR: Rajesh Hamal was the main draw of the show.
By Usha Wagle Gautam
Fifteen artists from Nepal gave electrifying performances at the West End Park in front of thousands of people last Friday to mark the Nepalese New Year 2072.
Bikram Sambat, or simply B.S., is the official calendar of the Himalayan nation that uses lunar months and solar sidereal year. This calendar is approximately 56.7 years ahead of international solar Gregorian calendar (AD), and is also sometimes used in India, Bangladesh, Sri Lanka, Thailand and Indonesia. This year, the new Bikram Sambat year fell on April 14.
The New Year celebrations at the West End Park featured the performances of Nepalese film legend Rajesh Hamal; actresses Priyanka Karki and Susma Karki; singers Sunita Shah, Rajesh Payal Rai, Indira Joshi, Aabhas Labh, Milan Lama, Chanda Aryal and Sima Sangraula; comedian Wilson Bikram Rai; dancers Dolly Sarkar, Shankar BC and Rashmi Tamang; and former Miss Nepal Malvika Subba.
Chargé d’affaires at Nepal’s Embassy to Qatar Ganesh Prasad Dhakal also attended the programme.
The programme started off with the performance of pop singer Sima Sangraula. Sangraula is one of the most popular young artistes in Nepal, with many of her music videos going viral. She performed two of her songs, and briefly commented after the performance— “even one great song can win the hearts of the audience.”
Chanda Aryal, folk singer, performed five of her songs. The audience members hummed along with her 20-minute-long performance. Performing for the second time in Qatar, Aryal said she was “mesmerised” by the crowd in front of her.
Dancing duo Shankar BC and Rashmi Tamang performed on two folk songs. Shanker, a dancer and model, is credited for directing about 1,600 folk and duet song videos. He was performing for the fifth time in Qatar.
Tamang was performing for the first time in Qatar. “I have performed in more than 10 countries, but today’s performance is one of my best,” Tamang said, “I felt like it was not my first time in Qatar, it seemed familiar.”
Folk singer Milan Lama performed six of his popular songs. Lama is quite popular among the non-resident Nepalese community in Qatar. He has performed in Qatar 11 times, and said he “is thrilled by the cheerful crowd” every time he performs here. “There is no drought of audience in Qatar, be it small venues, or large,” said Lama.
One of most sought-after Nepalese actresses, Priyanka Karki performed dances from her own movies — Nai Nabhannu La 2 and 3. Priyanka is also a former Miss Teen Nepal, well-known VJ, choreographer, model and a dancer. She has starred in 15 films, most of which have been box-office hits. Visiting Qatar for the fifth time, Priyanka said she was familiar with the audience as she had performed at the same venue a few months back. “I have performed in more than 20 countries, but Qatar is very special as I started my international performances here,” Priyanka said.
Singer Aabhas Labh performed three songs in three languages, Bhojpuri, Hindi and Maithili. Also a dentist, Labh has already performed in Qatar nine times and in 30 countries so far.
After Labh, dancer-model Dolly Sarkar stepped on stage and performed four electrifying dances on one Bhojpuri and three Hindi songs. She is one the most frequent attractions of Nepalese community programmes and has had 20 performances here so far. “Qatar is my second most visited country,” said Sarkar. “Some of my folks ask me whether I am bored with frequent visits to Qatar, and I answer them that Qatar is my most favourite destination and I am never tired of going there.”
Actress-dancer Susma Karki came on stage two times during the programme. Performing for the fourth time in Qatar, she praised the audience in the country for the respect they show to artistes. Susma has acted in 10 films so far.
After Karki’s performance, the main attraction of the programme, movie star Rajesh Hamal stepped on stage, supported by Priyanka and dancer Shankar BC. Together, they enacted a short skit, with Priyanka playing Hamal’s love interest, while Shankar played a villain who had kidnapped Priyanka. The story is a recurring theme in Nepali films. Hamal also portrayed a youth going abroad in search of work during his performance, getting a chance to say some of his most memorable lines from films.
Rajesh Hamal is a dominant figure in Nepalese cinema. He made his debut from Yug Dekhi Yug Samma (From Era to Era) in 1994. Hamal said it was his fifth visit to the country, the first being in 2000. “I have performed during Nepalese festival of Dashain, Eid and Ramadan,” Hamal said, “And I personally request the audience here to love Nepalese cinema and artists.”
Singer Indira Joshi performed three songs during the programme. Also a model, Joshi is often referred to as the Shakira of Nepal for her dancing skills.
Joshi was followed by singer Sunita Shah, who performed five songs in Bhojpuri, Hindi and Maithili languages. Performing for the ninth time in Qatar, Shah said this was her best performance here to date.
Comedian Wilson Bikram Rai performed a stand-up act for 20 minutes. TV and silver screen actor Rai is known for his roles in popular Nepalese sitcoms. His ‘The Wilson Bikram Show’ was aired on YouTube that garnered adequate audience, and created him as a popular figure. He generally imitates Limbu — a hilly dialect of Nepal — and impersonates a pensioner of British Gurkha Army. This was his fifth performance in Qatar.
The last performance of the day was by popular singer Rajesh Payal Rai. He passed the voice test of Radio Nepal, one of the toughest vocal tests in the country, when he was just 13. Since then, he has travelled the world over, performing in 80 countries. This was his ninth performance in Qatar. Indira Joshi also came on stage to sing along with Rai for one song.
The programme was hosted by model, popular VJ and former Miss Nepal Malvika Subba. After being crowned Miss Nepal in 2002, she hosted Call Kantipur, a popular televised phone-in show for many years. In 2008, she worked in Voice of India and MTV EXIT as the ambassador for anti-human trafficking. She is also a youth leader and entrepreneur. This was her second time coming to Qatar.
During the programme, Rajesh Hamal also handed over a cheque for Nepali Rs111,111 on behalf of the organisers to Ad Sherpa, vice-president of Crystal Youth Club. The money will be used to help orphaned children and senior citizens in Nepal.
Ramu Gurung, 48 and living in Qatar since he was 21, said be enjoyed the show to the “fullest”. Gurung said he saw Rajesh Hamal’s first film when he was 23 and was excited at the prospect of seeing Hamal live on stage.
Audience members Mina Rana, Yasoda Thapa and Shristi Magar said they were thrilled to see 15 of the most popular artistes from Nepal on stage together.
The programme, while filled with memorable performances, was not without it issues. Hari Lal Shrestha from Sanaiya and Mohan BC from Doha blamed the organisers for starting the programme three hours later than advertised.
The programme was sponsored by Ooredoo, Safari Mall, Alzaman Exchange, Himal Remit, Marzooq Al-Shamlan and Sons and Vision Group. The event was organised by Vision Group of Companies.
