_x000D_ _x000D_ _x000D_ “When mother died, I had to borrow money from the landlord for the funeral rites which are very elaborate and lasted for many weeks. I had to arrange grains and bring Lamas...
_x000D_ _x000D_ “We don’t have our own farmland so both my husband and I work in someone else’s land growing black cardamom. We keep two thirds of the produce while one third goes to the land owner....
“When I was 8 years old, one morning, I could not get out of bed. There was a very deep pain in my leg. From that day, my body started to feel weak. I could feel it lose strength. I could only walk...
“I am returning home after 3 months in Terai. Every year I collect herbs and medicines from the mountains and sell it in the plains. There is a market there. What can I do? I didn’t go to school and...
“When someone builds a new house, we take gifts to them. It’s customary. So a member of the family has to stay home to take part in such social occasions. When I was a kid, father and mother left for...
“One day a man came running and told me that my husband had fallen off the suspension bridge. That suspension bridge was supposed to have been fixed many months ago - there were wooden planks that...
“When I was a small boy, there were no bridges. Many people lost their lives, trying to cross the river. We would tie tree branches and vines together to make a rough bridge. And every day there...
“Sometimes, after school, I have to go collect wood and grass. But that is not my favourite thing to do. I like playing games on my uncle’s phone. The snake eats all the coins, that one.” (Ayush...
“I married a Nepali man from across the river. He came to my village in China to sell cattle. He would sit in front of my house and stare at me. And I would think – “Who is this man? Does he have no...
“I really don’t do anything, does farming count? You say agriculture and farmers are important but there is no value for farmers in our society. They are the ones who starve. My family is big, I...
(2/2) “Luckily, I found a relative who let me stay in his house. I was to help him with his chores and, in return, I could attend school. It felt good to return to my motherland. After I completed my...
_x000D_ _x000D_ _x000D_ (1/2) “My grandfather migrated to India a long time ago in search of a living. His crops had failed, so he had to borrow money from the village landlord. For food and to take...
“Maybe I was 12 years old. I remember everything like it was yesterday. It was Saraswati Puja and everyone from school was supposed to chip in 10 rupees and a handful of rice for the school picnic. I...
For the last two months, I have been travelling to various districts in Nepal, talking to people and listening to their stories. Stories of great hardships, generations of struggles, but also stories...
"That was the first time I had taken her out. Life got busy with the farm and after the children were born, we really didn't have any time for ourselves. All the time went into working to make a...
"Every time my son calls me from Qatar, I ask him when he will return. And he says, 'Mother who will pay the loan if I return without money?' And with sadness, I tell him, 'Okay son, take care of...
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