Balen Shah = Total Badass
After spending two weeks in Kathmandu, it's a bit strange we had to come to Pokhara to find out who Balen Shah is. The short answer (obviously) is a total badass. Just look at that guy. 100% badass for sure. Great look.
Meanwhile, the long answer is a 32 year old Nepali hip hop (or Nephop) singer with a master's degree in structural engineering, who also got elected mayor of Kathmandu earlier this year running as an independent. So, in other words, a total badass.
On the one hand, this is awesome. We talked to some younger people in and around Pokhara, who despite not living anywhere near Kathmandu are nevertheless excited about this political development.
However, on the other hand, you know the political situation in your country must be pretty dire, when this one small victory* is looked upon around the entire country as a major achievement. But best of luck to you Balen, by all accounts you're going to need it....
NB: While the Kathmandu Valley has more than 3m inhabitants, the city proper has only a fraction of that, with only 300,000 people registered to vote and turnout of only 160,000 in the 2022 municipal election, with Balen receiving around 62,000 votes in total. Still impressive that he won, but not as impressive as we'd initially thought before perusing his Wikipedia page....