Gham Ko Sano Tukra (Acoustic)

This week, this song feels especially meaningful for Nepalis everywhere 🌞. A little light, a little hope, a little optimism as we step toward a new horizon 🌈. #NayaNepal #NepalElections

Originally written for the children of CWIN Balika Peace Home, this song will always hold a special place in my heart. Every time I sing it, I feel the love, care, and hope that CWIN brings to children’s lives.

I’m wrapping up my last practice session with Gham Ko Sano Tukra and carrying all of this energy with me to share at Belukii Sessions UK 🇬🇧. 

It is going to be a truly magical night, and I can’t wait to spend it with you 🌃. Tickets link here → 🎟️. 

And if you can’t make it in person, every session is now streaming on all platforms so you can join in… wherever you are. 

Artist: Astha Tamang-Maskey
Song: Gham Ko Sano Tukra
Songwriter (Lyrics): Susan Maskey
Songwriter (Music): Astha Tamang-Maskey

#ghamkosaanotukra #intimatesessions #asthaunplugged #asongforeveryemotion  #belukiisessions #cwinbalikapeacehome

Stream all sessions here:

Khula Aakash (Acoustic)

This week, I’m revisiting Khula Aakash from my second Nepali album, “Ma Ek Sapana”. As the opening track, it perfectly captures my twenties: a free-spirited soul searching for freedom, identity, and a way to channel restless energy into something creative, something beautiful, something that could live beyond me.

The lyrics were originally written by my mother, Susan Maskey, and were dedicated to the liberation of women and the fight for women’s rights. Khula Aakash was born as an offering of freedom, a reminder that women deserve open skies, open voices, and the space to exist fully as themselves.

Over time, the adult version of me has come to understand that true freedom does not exist outside of us. It lives within the layers we build inside ourselves. Beyond inner dialogue and reflection, there is a deeper awareness that simply sits, listens, observes, and does not react. It allows everything to be as it is. Perhaps that is the deepest form of freedom there is: resting in that awareness, knowing that we are free.

As we reflect on Women’s Day weekend, this song feels especially alive. At times, the greatest fear is losing our sense of self. But if there is a presence beyond the self itself, then what is there to lose? Full session available on all streaming platforms.

Artist: Astha Tamang-Maskey
Album: Ma Ek Sapana
Song: Khula Aakash 
Songwriter (Lyrics): Susan Maskey
Songwriter (Music): Astha Tamang-Maskey, Rohit Shakya

#khulaaakaash #intimatesessions #asthaunplugged #asongforeveryemotion #maeksapanathealbum

Listen to the full session here:

Harek Saas Sita (Acoustic)

This week I’m revisiting Harek Saas Sita, perhaps one of my favourite songs on my second album, “Ma Ek Sapana." Songs are strange; they’re like human layers, continuously changing, evolving in meaning with time. That’s perhaps why I love the art of songwriting so deeply. It has always been my way of time-stamping experiences, sealing moments into little capsules I can return to years later. Revisiting these songs lately has been therapy on its own, where I get to connect with a version of myself from a long time ago. 

Even though this version of me has moved on from the emotions experienced while writing this song, it definitely sits as a reminder in my body, where I find my younger self searching for a way to calm her nervous system down. How beautiful that songwriting became the medium through which I could hold, compartmentalize, and safely store emotions that felt overwhelming. A soul that once craved deep isolation is now slowly stepping back into the public eye, carrying new layers, a new identity, and a renewed sense of self.

Songwriting, as an art form, has been my closest companion my entire life, and today all I feel is gratitude that I get to do this… write songs and sing them for you. Full session on all streaming platforms.

Artist: Astha Tamang-Maskey
Album: Ma Ek Sapana
Song: Harek Saas Sita
Songwriter (Lyrics): Astha Tamang-Maskey
Songwriter (Music): Astha Tamang-Maskey

#hareksaassita  #intimatesessions #asthaunplugged #asongforeveryemotion #maeksapanathealbum

Listen to the full session here:

Muskuraye (Acoustic)

This week, I’m revisiting the song Muskuraye. Written more than a decade ago, it holds a lifetime of memories and emotions. I first composed it during the early years of exploration of my own voice and identity as an artist. Performing it today reminds me of the journey I have been on, from growing up in Canada to returning to Kathmandu after so many years away from home. That visit, and the process of writing this song, captured a moment of reconnection with my roots, my family, and myself.

Performing Muskuraye today fills me with nostalgia, gratitude, and reflection. Beyond the memories, the song carries a message that remains close to my heart: love yourself, honour your needs, and make space for your own joy. There is a profound happiness that comes from accepting yourself fully and without reservation, and when that joy is nurtured, it naturally flows outward, filling the hearts of those who love you.

More than a decade later, Muskuraye still speaks to me. It reminds me of how far I have come, the love that surrounds me, and the importance of continuing to nurture myself and those around me on this journey. Full session on all streaming platforms.

Album: Sabai Thikai Huncha

Artist: Astha Tamang-Maskey

Song: Muskuraye

Songwriter (Lyrics): Astha Tamang-Maskey

Co-writer (Lyrics): Susan Maskey

Songwriter (Music): Astha Tamang-Maskey

#muskuraye #intimatesessions #asthaunplugged #asongforeveryemotion #sabaithikaihunchathealbum

Listen to the full session here:

Sabai Thikai Huncha (Acoustic)

This week I’m revisiting Sabai Thikai Huncha, a song that is now exactly 17 years old since its conception. Originally from my mother’s little notebook of musings, her poem reads like this:

jaba aafule aafailai samjhauchhu

“sabai thikai huncha”

taba nanma bharkhar naya chot lageko huncha

naya arko chotlai sahana koshish huncha

aankha matra bhijdaina

sirani pani bhijchha

dhuja dhuja man talne

koshish jaba huncha 

naya sita purano sabai,

ghauharu feri taja huncha

Many of my life’s relationships, whether creative, passionate, or platonic, live in an intricate, interwoven web shaped by my love for music. I didn’t bring this into my awareness until much later, but a part of me contemplates, if music hadn’t been so central to my life, what shape would my relationships have taken? Would people have seen me for who I really am? 

Why do I continue to pour so much of who I am into this one art form? Is it something instilled deep in me through my environment, or is it simply just part of my genetic code? Is it obsession or is it alignment?

Turns out “Sabai Thikai Huncha” was never about hope as optimism - it’s about hope as survival, mirroring human resilience. Turns out, music is what has held everything in my lineage for generations - relationships, pain, release, and growth - long enough for me to understand it. Turns out… human beings don’t just make art; we live it, and then we document it.

During a recent phone call with my mother, we arrived at a quiet realization: not everything in life is meant to unfold in the way we define as “for the best.” Life is a collection of experiences we move through - some uplifting, some challenging. 

We are here to experience, to grow, and to continually evolve into who we are meant to be. “Good” …“bad” …”the best”…in the end, are just simply human interpretations. Full session on all streaming platforms.

Artist: Astha Tamang-Maskey

Album: Sabai Thikai Huncha

Song: Sabai Thikai Huncha

Songwriter (Lyrics): Susan Maskey

Co-writer (Lyrics): Astha Tamang-Maskey

Songwriter (Music): Astha Tamang-Maskey

#sabaithikaihuncha #intimatesessions #asthaunplugged #asongforeveryemotion #sabaithikaihunchathealbum

Listen to the full session here:

Bhana (Acoustic)

This week, I’m visiting a song deep from the archives. A song that may not be familiar to most of you, but lives on the album “Sabai Thikai Huncha”. Bhana carries echoes of a time filled with rehearsals and jam sessions..with a band which started off with incredible musicians Raajib (Space Cake Break), Rohit (Jindabaad/Swar), and Prajol dai (Looza) and later evolved into collaborations with maestros Sunny (St Trio), Abhisek (Atomic Bush), and Kiran (Jindabaad). Sometimes, we were lucky and Rajan “dai” (Phatcowlee) joined us too. We used to jokingly call ourselves Astha Tamang-Maskey and “The Plus Band” and laugh hysterically right after.

Tiny me...was taking on every show I could, so hungry, and so eager to grow. I showed up to every rehearsal, soaking in everything I could from these extraordinary musicians who were masters of their craft. Luck bhanne ki…fate bhanne… I’m grateful I got to be in rooms that were always full of growth and inspiration. 

I’m really looking forward to bringing a fresh band rendition of this song to life when I finally take on some full band live shows someday. Also as I practice, I am quietly contemplating to myself, why do I like major and minor 7th chords so much? Lately all of life’s beauty has been in returning to the things I love.  Full session on all streaming platforms.

Album: Sabai Thikai Huncha
Artist: Astha Tamang-Maskey
Song: Bhana
Songwriter (Lyrics): Susan Maskey
Songwriter (Music): Astha Tamang-Maskey

#bhana #intimatesessions #asthaunplugged #asongforeveryemotion #sabaithikaihunchathealbum

Listen to the full session here:

Gotta Be Love (Acoustic)

This week, I find myself revisiting “Gotta Be Love.” It was October of 2008, I had just arrived in Kathmandu, standing at the very beginning of my journey, ready to work on my debut Nepali album, “Sabai Thikai Huncha” at Looza ko dai haru ko studio, Rec Records. I was just a kid then, young, a little naive, and carrying big, beautiful dreams in my heart.

I remember having this long list of goals, and somewhere on it was a loud desire to write my first radio “hit.” And then, one fine morning, inspiration struck.

What followed still feels unreal. The love you gave this song, the magic of hearing it on the radio for the first time, and watching it climb to #1 on major radio stations in Kathmandu...are moments etched into my memory forever.

I am also deeply grateful to the early YouTube community back in 2009. So many of you uploaded videos to this song and helped it travel far beyond anything I could have imagined. One upload in particular, by YouTuber e5or, still stands out in my mind. Those early shares and support meant everything.

Revisiting this song takes me straight back to my teenage years. I hope “Gotta Be Love” takes you back too. Full session on all streaming platforms. 

Artist: Astha Tamang-Maskey
Album: Sabai Thikai Huncha
Song: Gotta Be Love
Songwriter (Lyrics): Astha Tamang-Maskey
Co-writer (Lyrics): Pooja Shrestha
Songwriter (Music): Astha Tamang-Maskey
Engineer (Recording. Mixing, Mastering): Astha Tamang-Maskey

#gottabelove #intimatesessions #asthaunplugged #asongforeveryemotion #sabaithikaihunchathealbum

Listen to the full session here:

Jhuto Satya (Acoustic)

As I patiently await the Year of the Horse 🐎…. a new album, a new feature film, and hopefully the promise of some live shows are emerging on the horizon 🌅.…. This week, my practice/inspiration sessions begin. I’m travelling down memory lane with the song Jhuto Satya. This song holds so many memories...little teenage me, pondering the dualities of life. Funny how, as an adult, I’ve come to realize that real truth is never as black and white. It mostly exists in shades...in the in-between, in the grey, on a spectrum.. within little white lies. For those who remember my very first music video for this song… haha..that means we go wayyyyyy… wayyyy wayyyyyyyy back…It’s nice to connect with you all again 👋.. Full session on all streaming platforms. 

Album: Sabai Thikai Huncha
Artist: Astha Tamang-Maskey
Song: Jhuto Satya
Songwriter (Lyrics): Astha Tamang-Maskey
Songwriter (Music): Astha Tamang-Maskey

#jhutosatya #intimatesessions #asthaunplugged #asongforeveryemotion #sabaithikaihunchathealbum

Listen the full session here: