Bootleg it, or buy it. Just listen to what I have to say.
As I climb the seemingly endless flight of stairs of a building in Bagbazar, I try to visualize what lies ahead of me. I'm here to interview Anil Adhikari, better known by his stage name Yama Buddha, but so far I've only been greeted by closed shutters and empty halls.
Finally I make it to the top of the building and I get to see Anil himself. But Anil's appearance surprised me. I had imagined him to be a high-end rapper decked with bling - bling but he turned out to be the oppossite. Dressed simply in a T-shirt with jeans along with a snapback hat, he looked down to earth and greeted me with a warm smile.
25-year old Anil is a rapper, and a good one at that. He writes his own lyrics. While others rap about fast cars, girls and money, the man known as Yama Buddha dares to broach social taboos through his music. When I inquire about the meaning of 'Yama Buddha' he explains that it emphasizes human nature. When a person is angry he represents Yama, the god of death wheareas when the same person is happy he represents Buddha, the bringer of peace. Just like this, we all have a choice to do good or bad, which he tries to express through his name.
Anil was studying in the United Kingdom when he decided to come back to Nepal in order to follow his dream. He says that if he had chosen to stay there, he would have been a different person today. But he came home and released a mixtape with the song is 'Sathi'that made a huge impact on the youth.
He wrote this song based on his his own experience and what he has seen and heard. He realised that a lot of his friends had become drug addicts, and they had neglected all their responsibilites for a chemical substance. And instead of helping the youth, the government chose to label them as criminals and junkies so he decided write a song about it.
Anil was once a metalhead and the first time he got into hip-hop music was almost 10 years ago, when he was in bed with a broken foot. The song 'Chudaina' by Nepsydaz was trending at that time and after hearing this song, he really liked it and decided to do something similar.
Anil feels that the current Nepali Hip-Hop scene has talent but doesn't get repect or exposure. He also stresses that home-grown talent is ignored while foreign artists are welcomed with wide arms. He says that, "People will flock to see Bryan Adams but if you organize a local event, very few people show up. Afno manchey ko maya nai chaina."
When I inquire about family support, he responds in a rather serious tone that they are supporting him now but they were not as accepting of his career choice a few years ago. Because of this Anil asks for your support, and in return he promises to work hard and make even better songs. He wants the public to be more involved and listen to his work and give him feedback. In his own words, " Bootleg it or buy it. Just listen to what I have to say."
"Join in the Football Craziness" with Coca-Cola on EURO 2012
Coca-Cola celebrate the 2012 UEFA European Football Championship with a new integrated campaign set to excite and engage fans during the tournament in June. The campaign calls on consumers to unleash their inner Super Fan and celebrate FOOTBALL HAPPINESS with Coca-Cola. The 360 degree communication program will inspire and invite consumers to get "transformed" into football crazy fans to release their football craziness.
The entire 360 degree communication effort is complemented by a range of on-ground initiatives including in-store and on-ground activations. 15 renowned colleges in Kathmandu will have various interesting activations. The winners from colleges will get a chance to watch Euro Cup 2012 final match at QFX and loads of cool Coca-Cola football goodies. The campaign offers Coca-Cola drinkers an opportunity to win 2 LCD TV, 20 QFX couple tickets every week and tons of football goodies. To take part in this fabolous campaign, Coca-Cola drinkers have to answer daily questions which will appear on newspapers, television and radio and SMS "coke<space>name<space>option" to 7722 before mid night.
Xpress Money flags off Eco-Everest Expedition 2012
Top climbers commence 58 day challenging expedition to clean, Mt. Everest Xpress Money, one of the fastest growing money transfer companies in the world, in conjunction with Asian Trekking – a leading organizer of treks and expeditions in Nepal and Tibet, launched 'Xpress Money Eco-Everest Expedition 2012' a unique clean up expedition on Mount Everest.
This year's expedition would be led by Dawa Steven Sherpa, Managing Director, Asian Trekking, Nepal, and Apa Sherpa, the world record holder with 21 ascents to Mount Everest.
The increasing number of climbers and tourists to Mount Everest is putting a great strain on the fragile eco-system, resulting in heaps of waste from the base camp to the peak. Climate changes has resulted in melting of the snow revealing the waste which had been hidden for decades including oxygen cylinders, tents and climbing equipment. The current expedition will attempt to climb Mount Everest in an eco-sensitive manner and bring down waste from the peak. The expedition will use alternative energy solutions like parabolic solar cookers, solar energies for lighting and the SteriPENs for water purification.
About Xpress Money:
Xpress Money (a subsidiary of UAE Exchange Financial Services Ltd. In India) is a global money transfer brand with a thriving presence in more than 125 countries in 5 continents across 135,000 agent locations across the world. With the motto of 'bringing home closer' to millions of migrants residing away from their homes, Xpress Money has come to be known as the most dependable international money transfer brand.
KALODIN
After months of preparation, KALODIN released its new EP album titled, SARV at Trisara Garden of Heaven, Lazimpat on 12th May 2012.
The event was presented by Ellipsis Entertainment and featured bands such as Underside, Bidroha, White, Hatebook, Plan, Aftermath and Wakk Thuu.
Let the battle begin!
Bivit Gurung
 Bivit gurung |
Something is definitely going to go down at Neon Pub at Mandala Street. Battle Nutz Crew who are the top-ranked team has brought along their students as well, the Junior Battle Nutz, who are entering the competition. Outside, the Astro Boyz are making their presence felt by 'jamming' in a small circle, which draws the attention of the crowd.
Todays event is a 2 vs 2 event and a total of 16 teams are participating. The judges Nhurr, Flash and Nemo of the Everest Crew are pairing up the crews by having the audience pull out names from a hat. The pairing for the first round is done and you can hear the people saying, " Battle Nutz ra Astro first round mai paryo?" It's a shock for both the teams as one of their dreams is going to end prematurely today. But it's the Battle Nutz with their signature cyan colored shirts who are moving on to round two.
Round two begins on a high note as the the remaining Astro teams set up an all Astro semi-final, while the underdogs Unknown Crew decimate the Breakneck Squad with their silky smooth moves. BNC themselves have no trouble making it to the semi-finals.
Since all Astro semi-finalists are from the same crew, they know each others moves very well and are able to counter them with finesse.
The second semi-final pits the energetic Battle Nutz against the fluid elegance of Unknown Crew. B-Boy Lhyook from BNC definitely knows how to build hype as he gets the crowd going as soon as he enters the floor. Lhyook's outrageous tricks and Dup's river-like flow are enough to get them into the finals.
With this, the last battle of the day begins with the DJ busting out an old-school beat. Earlier B-Boy Dup had stressed that on the way to the final he used up all of moves leaving him with nothing for the final round.
ervousness can be seen in the eyes of both the crews as Battle Nutz starts with another well staged routine that involves Dup taking off his shirt to do a 'back-spin' on his bareback. In response B-Boy Element takes off his shirt but BNC start mocking him. Tension builds as the usually flawless Element messes up his set while BNC continue to raise the heat. Things go from bad to worse for Astro1 as B-Boy Trix messes up a routine due to lack of space, however he makes up for it with a sensational headspin.
In the end the crowd is roaring and when the judges are about to announce the winner, the place is silent for the first time. 3-2-1! And unanimously by a vote of 3 to 0, Battle Nutz are declared the winners.
In the end, all the crews are seen interacting and laughing together as the tension between them has disappeared. This is the moment when I realise that it wasn't about winning or losing at all, it was about everybody coming together to dance their hearts out and express themselves.
