Life has never been easy for Angel Lama. From struggling to come to terms with her parents’ divorce and her mother’s illness to being consumed by suicidal thoughts, it’s always been difficult. But above all is perhaps her life long struggle for acceptance and respect. Born Sabin Lama, Angel always felt trapped in the wrong body. Severely bullied at school for her ‘feminine’ mannerisms by peers, juniors and seniors alike, Angel grew to dread social interactions and attempted to end her life when she was 16 years old.

“Even though Kirtipur municipality is home to the biggest university of our nation, from what we’ve seen so far, the reading culture here is very underdeveloped,” says Shankar Bhandari, an English teacher at Creative Academy. He further adds that currently, he believes, liquor stores, bars and nightclubs are places that more popular than bookstores and libraries in the municipality.

Nepali adhunik geet has always had a devoted audience across the country, albeit a smaller one than popular music. While one can hear and see the songs and videos on radio or TV, there is an entirely different feel to it when you sit amidst other adhunik geet enthusiasts and listen to these tunes of the past, and that too when musicians trained in classical music are lending their voices to it.

In an attempt to promote tourism and provide a platform for creative expression Nepal Tourism Board (NTB) has been organizing Photo Nepal, a monthly photo exhibition for the last four years. Over the years, they have organized competitions and exhibits to reflect the natural and cultural essence of Nepal.

I’ve enjoyed solitude for as long as I can remember. Being alone or doing things by myself has never really bothered me. I actually prefer getting things done on my own rather than having someone tag along with me when I’m out and about. I suppose this also has to do with the fact that I’m an introvert. I’ve never seen being alone as a problem and I actually look forward to spending time by myself.

This week saw yet another tragic case of a Nepali student drowning in Australia. Over the past few years, we have read and heard about what seems like more than sporadic instances of drowning deaths in other countries – of young lives lost either due to misadventure or a lack of grounding in water related activities.

In the remote Himalayan districts of Karnali region, policymakers assess that women carry out around 75 percent of the total works in farms and that the work is highly labor intensive. Despite their significant contributions, their safety and health needs are being overlooked. And the women suffer silently.

When talking about revolutionary artists or avant-gardes, names like Van Gogh or Picasso are the first ones to come to mind. But there are also equally talented women in the field of art – many of them popular and well respected in the art circle but still relatively unknown to us ‘art’ novices. According to the National Museum of Women in the Arts, 51 percent of visual artists today are women. But when it comes to exhibitions and gallery representation, the numbers tell a less optimistic story. And even though women in history have made an equally impressive mark in art, they are still misrepresented. Here are five women who were able to make unspoken but equally powerful history in the field of art.

Nobody wants to buy plain and simple clothing items. We would rather buy trendy and unique pieces that make us feel stylish. But in our rush to grab the latest clothing pieces, sometimes we overlook staple items that should make the foundation of our wardrobe and style. If you have these key pieces in your closet, we guarantee you can get ready for any event without fretting over what to wear. Here, The Week lists a few basic clothing pieces whose importance might have escaped your notice. These are pieces you absolutely must have in your wardrobe.

Houses and their structures aren’t supposed to be generic. The type of house should depend on the climate, culture, and the quality of the ground it is being built on. These factors hugely influence the kind of structure that will be sustainable in a certain area.