This week, I’m listening to “Jhari Pareko Din” by Babin Pradhan. This song transports me back to many childhood memories spent in my childhood home in Lazimpat. Meticulously designed by my father, and interior decorated by my mother, this house was a marvel in its day and still is 🙂.
Standing tall, and resilient through many years of Kathmandu weathering, and most recently the 2015 earthquake, the house has played host and been a home to many artists, musicians, and travellers over the years... If you were an active musician from 2012 to 2014, it is very likely that at some point in time, you must have spent a few moments in our Lazimpat home. If you have, you will remember those cold, chilling orange kitchen floor tiles that I speak of, the artisan oil lamps on the balcony, the big mirrors in the living room, the beautiful arches throughout the home, our wonderful dog Simba and the tall pink Bougainvillaea flower vine crawling up the 3 stories all the way to the roof.
I have so many memories of Lazimpat Ghar, including the memories of tiny Astha, waking up really early, running to the kitchen barefoot, scooping out a bowl full of rice and rushing to the terrace to feed the pigeons every morning. You see, I was in direct competition with our neighbour Baju across the street, as to who got the most pigeons to show up on their roof. But no matter how many rice grains my tiny hands could carry, Baju across the street always won, and she got hundreds of pigeons to always show up on her roof. Even those super rare white speckled pigeons. This never stopped me from trying, though, I continued to feed the pigeons every single morning. The beautiful view of the Himalayan range, the wonderful morning air while rising with the morning sun, and this song playing. Oh, what a feeling. #makesmesuperemotional
My dii used to say that Babin Pradhan wrote this song while mourning for his love who died in a plane crash. When music becomes the medium to heal one’s pain, the most magical thing happens. It gets shared. It becomes a moment in time, when you are not alone. Music has always helped me connect to the deepest, darkest parts of my soul, just so that I could be aware and shine some light in those corners. For all these years, you’ve been there listening, feeling with me …for that, I am eternally grateful.
Here is my rendition of “Jhari Pareko Din” by Babin Pradhan.
Listen to the original here:
