I am Amrit Nepali

"Let me introduce my band members … to my left is Subin on bass, Dhurba on drums …"

In every one of my concerts, I introduce my band members to enormous applause. And as a matter of principle I do not use their surnames. During one of the shows of my Peace Concert Tour of Nepal earlier this year, someone in the audience shouted out:

"Dhurba ... who?"

This was one voice in an audience of thousands, but it was loud enough for me to hear on stage.

I had to respond. "Subin SHAKYA on bass," I said with an emphasis on the surname, "Dhurba LAMA on drums, Niraj GURUNG on guitars, Suraj THAPA on keyboards, Shanti RAYAMAJHI on percussion and I am Amrit GURUNG."

But I went on: "We are all Nepali even though some are trying to divide us by ethnicity, that is why I don't take the surnames of band members. Look at the six of us here on stage, we are Nepal in a microcosm. Some of us have flat noses, others have pointed ones. Some have slit eyes, others have round ones. But that does not stop us from working together as a team. In fact, it helps us create better music. Let us all say we are members of one big Nepali family." The entire hall burst into sustained applause I hadn't heard anywhere else. I couldn't see the person who had shouted out for surnames, his voice had been drowned out.

I communicate with Nepalis through music on my concert tours. For the past decade my band has been crisscrossing Nepal with the message of peace, justice and national unity. I do this through the cementing role of the Nepali language, the lingua franca that allows Nepalis everywhere to communicate with each other. In between songs, I ask audiences: "I am a Nepali and proud to be one. Are you?" There is a collective and deafening roar: "Yes!"
When I am not on concert tours, I travel across Nepal on foot. From the villages of the far-west to the east, from the Himals to the Tarai, wherever I go, I find food and shelter through my Nepali language. Let us not debate the origin of this language, the reality is that it is one of the few things that weaves our national fabric together, and unites all Nepalis everywhere.

All of us came from somewhere else to live in what is now Nepal, it is futile to debate who settled here first. Time has moved on, but one thing is for sure: none of the other languages, Gurung, Newar, Magar, Bhojpuri, Maithali, Tamang can be a common language. They won't even serve as common languages within the provinces that ethnic groups want to name after their own.

Gurung used to be widely spoken in my home town of Pokhara not only by us Gurungs, but by others as well. Similarly, Newari was spoken widely by all inhabitants of Kathmandu, not just Newars. If we want Nepal to be a strong and prosperous country, we need to spread the unifying message of the Nepali language and Nepali nationhood.

Whenever I speak on these issues during concerts from Syangja to Sydney, from Fikkal to Finland the forceful feedback from the audience gives me confidence that the silent majority of Nepalis feel the same way. It's just that these voices have been sidelined by divisive slogans magnified by the media. All Nepalis I have met, irrespective of their place of domicile, have one thing in common: their common Nepali identity and the pride in being a Nepali first.
Of course, there has been discrimination and exclusion throughout Nepal's history. Some have done better than others. But that does not mean all people from all marginalised groups were completely suppressed. My identity today is based on all people of Nepali origin liking my music, not just the Gurungs.

My friend Nabin Subba became a filmmaker because Nepalis everywhere appreciate his craft, not just because he was liked only by his ethnic group. Madhav Prasad Ghimire, Ambar Gurung, Gopal Yonzon, Bairagi Kainla and Narayan Gopal did not become national figures because they were Bahun, Gurung, Tamang, Limbu or Newar.
The CA can decide to carve up the country in however many pieces it wants, but my appeal is: don't confine me to one part of Nepal. I do not want to be a first class citizen of just one province and feel second class in the rest of the country. I want to feel I am standing on my soil, wherever I stand, from Mechi to Mahakali.

Amrit Gurung is the founder of the Nepali folk rock band, Nepathya.

http://www.nepalitimes.com/issue/2012/05/24/GuestColumn/19310

I totally agree. Its time for the nepalese people to speak up and politicians to shut up.

Politicians aren't going to shut up unless someone makes them shut up. Are you going to be the one to shut them up? or are you only going to complain?

Thesedays I am getting tired of people complaining about how things are and how things should be. The time for complaining is over. Nothing is going to happen unless you do it yourself. If you want the politicians to shut up you have to go and make them shut up.

Sorry halo, my response is not towards you directly but towards everyone who's been complaining complaining and doing nothing about it.

I totally agree patan. Its easy for people like me to sit in my luxury apartment and type in the computer. I wish I were there in the durbar marg in the protest rally.

Peace rally.
Love
Halo nepali

That is why we all need to band together and get rid of all the top political leaders in Nepal starting with the MAOISTS.

@Fantush: When I first read the article of Amrit Gurung, i gave my hats off to him and salute him for trying to bring all the people of Nepal together.

However, if you look at the situation in Nepal wearing the minority cap in rural villages, the truth is transparent and racism is rampant. Why do you think that all the gurungs/magars go to overseas for labor jobs although they are educated? Because they don't get the opportunity like other majority caste like bahun/cheetri/newar. Look at an example of Dharan or pokhara where majority of people are gurungs/rai/limbhu but the government posts are all taken by the brahmin/cheetris/newar etc.  When you see some indian looking person selling bottles, why do you(us) make fun of him as bhaiya although he is madhesi. How discriminated he might have felt when we label him as indians although he was born here? It looks very good when you look on your perspective but you have to think from other perspective as well.

When something goes here in US against minority, you(Us) are the first one to speak against racism although we don't have any rights to speak in US as being immigrants but we try to ignore the rights of fellow minority citizens of our country.

My point here is not to divide the country based on ethnic caste or religion but to integrate us with the equal opporunity law act irrespective of race, religion, gender and age like here in US. Therefore the government should come with the equal opportunity law act instead of dividing the country based on ethnic caste and religion.

Peace
Sirus_Me
 

@sirus_me  I 've got the a comment for you which is more similar to my thoughts and hope you'll get the answer ,I'm also up for equal rights but there are lots of things to take into consideration before we jump on any conclusion.
सदभाब र एकता मैन बत्ति बालेर नआए जस्तै आदिबासी जनजाती जिन्दाबाद भन्दैमा पनि आउदैन \ जब समर्थन मा जिन्दाबाद भनिन्छ बिरोध मा मुर्दाबाद पनि भनिन्छ भने कसरी त्यहा एकता हुन्छ ? समानता हुन्छ ?के कुनै पनि समाज ,क्षेत्र ,देश मा कुनै जाति ,धर्मालम्बी ,बिचार धेरै भएको आधारमा मात्रै एकता र समानता हुने आधार गनिन्छ र भनिन्छ भने थोरै जाति ,धर्मालम्बी ,बिचार भए एकता नगर्ने ,समानता नभन्ने थोरै भएको अधार मै त्यो जात का( बर्ग होइन ) सबै मानिस दोषी ठहरिने ? तिन का हक अधिकार पहिचान र जातीयता को महत्व नहुने ?आफु हरु को जस्तै तिन लाइ आफ्नो पहिचान र जातीयताको माया हुदैन ? तिनलाई सम्मान गरिनु पर्दैन ? यो कस्तो खाले एकता ,पहिचान र जातीयता को कुरा गराई हो ? लौ मानि लिउ यो उदाहरण हो कि थोरै जातिले हिजो धेरै जाति माथि अन्याय ,भेदभाब ,साशन गर्यो भन्दैमा आज अनि भोलि धेरै जातिले थोरै जाति माती अन्याय ,भेदभाब ,सोषण गर्न सक्ने आधार बनाउन खोज्ने ? अब सोशक र सोषित को कुरा हराए ? जनता र साशकका कुरा फेरीए ? सहरका जनता ,शिक्षित जनता ,ढलाने घर हुने जनता भयो भन्दैमा सुकिला र मुकिला भनेर बिपक्षी बनाइ हाल्ने ? के ति नेता ,पार्टी ,आन्दोलन ,क्रान्ति को लागि सहयोगी थिएनन ? सहयोगी हुदैनन् ? यो कस्तो टाट पल्टाई सोच हो ? हिजो आदिबासी ,जनजाती ,बाहुन क्षेत्री लगायत सबै गरिब बर्ग माथि एकै खाले बर्ग ,साशक ,राज्य ले अन्याय ,अत्याचार ,सोषण दमन ,भेदभाब गरेको होइन र ? २००७,२०३६,२०४६,२०६३ सम्म एक बर्ग ले अर्को बर्ग लाइ थिचोमिचो गर्यो भनेर भन्ने सबै जाति मिलेर आन्दोलन ,क्रान्ति गर्ने ,पार्टी ,संगठन निर्माण गर्ने २०६९ मा बर्ग बिहिन भएर जाति मात्र बाकि रह्यो ? बिचारले हार खाएर जाति ले जितेको हो ? बैचारिक एकता ,बर्गीय एकता ,स्वार्थ बाकि रहेन अब ? बैचारिक ,सैदान्तिक पार्टी को आबस्यकता हराएको हो ? जातीय राजनीति हाबी बनेमा माओबादी ,एमाले ,कांग्रेश .मधेशबादी ,प्रजातन्त्रबादी पार्टी को अस्तित्व बाकि रहन्छ ? एकै परिबार ,रगत का सन्तान को बिचमा त स्वार्थ र सम्पत्ति को लागि मारामार ,काटाकाट हुने हाम्रो नेपालि घर ,परिबार ,समाज भोलि भिन्न जातीय राज्य बने पछी ब्यबहार मा ,स्वार्थ मा तल माथि पर्यो भने राज्य राज्य बीच ,जाति जाति बीच झगडा ,द्वन्द ,लडाई हुदैन भन्न कोहि सक्छ ? नेपालि समाज नेपालि राजनीति ,नेपालि भबिस्य कता डोरिदैछ ? एक क्षण आफ्नो जस्तै अरुको पनि आफ्नै जस्तो आशा ,खुशी र माया हुन्छ भनेर सोच्ने कि ! आदिबाशी ,जनजाती , बाहुन ,क्षेत्री लगाएत सबै समाज का अंग कंगाल पारिएको राज्यको बनावट ,साशक का ब्यग्तिगत ,पारिवारीक र सामुहिक नाजायज स्वार्थ र काम कार्यबाही ले हो जाति ले होइन \ बर्ग ले हो जाति ले होइन \ बर्गीय समस्यालाई जातीय समाधान ले हल गर्न खोज्नु भनेको टाउको को दुखाइ मार्न नाइटोमा औसधि लगाउनु जस्तै हो \ के हामि यति सारो अबुझ र अन्धो भै सकेउ \
source of comment : someone frm Maryland USA

Everone in the US has a right to speak against racism. What state do you come from Sirus-Me? 

@fantush: No offense but i hate reading reading long posts. Also, i'm not good at reading so long article in nepali :-). Like i said, i'm also against Nepal bandh and division of country based on race, caste and religion. But my point is not to look at your own perspective but look at others who have been facing racism and discrimination for years. Villages government and education posts are filled up by majority caste in nepal even though there are qualified minority caste and hence they have to go arabian countries to do labor job. Madhesis has to survive labeled as indians although they are Nepali. These are true and bitter truths of Nepal, my friend.

@Nepalbandhgarnehater: Brah,i travel a lot for my job, so i can't say that i belong to any state ;-).

Then you should know that every state in the US, people can be either legal, illegal, or otherwise and be against racism.

nepalbandhater: Dude, You can't fight for ur civil rights whether is related to racism or not here in US if you are not a legal immigrant. If you do, they will ship you out the country and might even jail you for staying here. Also, my point is not about here but about Nepal where racism is rampant in rural villages of Nepal. While you cry for your rights here, you ignore the rights of other indigenious groups of Nepal.

Peace.
Sirus_Me.