I have invested the two long decades of my precious life in and around the alleys of Kathmandu juxtaposing with reality and the dreams.  Kathmandu has provided me with the most amazing, most exciting, most delirious and some most fervent moments that I shall carry within me for my whole life. The golden years of school days, the frivolous college days and the sweating days to make something out of my self in race for a career have all been engraved in Kathmandu itself. After my family, what ever I got till now, and what ever situation I went through are all simply the boon of Kathmandu. I have shared each and everything with Kathmandu. All my hopes, dreams, aspirations and inspirations have the foundation in Kathmandu.

          A gleeful kid fond of hovering around with his friends is now a grown up. A young man enjoying his best of the best moments in and around the college is now a responsible denizen. Similarly, a responsible denizen is now a dream weaver and a career conscious being. Two decade has passed along with this kid and so has the Kathmandu. The ever flowing river, the ascending trees and even the age old hills have seen and faced this change. The ground where he enjoyed being once upon a time, no more enthralls him, the school where he passed his golden moments are remembered only when he has to recite something among the little kids and the college where he had the hilarious era are fading day by day.

    Change is the bitter reality of the world. No one and nothing can survive the change. Change is the only truth we have to accept. Some changes are for good and a matter to be celebrated whereas some are devastating and heart wrenching. Even then we cannot escape this change. My perception, my anticipation, my wants and even my friends have changed. Knowingly or unknowingly we flow with this river of change and never forget to make it a point to blame the whole thing to the destiny and fate. I have witnessed a vast change in my life and a vast change even with Kathmandu.

   With two decades Kathmandu experienced a vast change. If change is to be talked about regarding Kathmandu, she has been inflicted a heavy blow physically and naturally.  Along with me, a profound numbers of populations have grown up with time and Kathmandu. The boulevard, the alleys and the narrow lanes where I once passed through have all changed withinKathmandu.

   We have thousands of politicians but we don’t have a single leader to lead Nepal and Kathmandu. We have countless schools and colleges in every nook and corners of Kathmandu but what we lack is the educated lots. Everything is just a meager source of collecting wealth. Kathmandu has turned out everyone into a businessman and Kathmandu, itself into a business hub. The grave problem of unemployment has crippled the life of Kathmanduites and Kathmandu. Crimes and criminals are rampant in Kathmandu. The decade long civil war of Maoist has come to and end but till date we have not seen any visual developments in the political arena.

   The rich have grown richer and the proletariats are growing poorer day by day in Kathmandu. When other part of the globe has seen the change both in terms of technology and life style, Kathmandu has been the victim of stagnant change. We have not been able to witness any significant changes besides growing old. The sky rocketing price, the fight for survival and the egoistic pattern of life is fueling us to choose ‘live for your self strategy’.

    We have a tendency to blame other for what’s wrong and we are well versed to comment on how things should be. We always try to run away from the realities. We have a whole bunch of youngsters in Kathmandu who have a prime motive of leaving on a jet plane. We, from Kathmandu always think about ourselves, neither about the country nor about the responsibilities we carry.

     We have taps here in every house, but how ironic it is to say that we don’t have water; even then we boast of being the second richest country in terms of water. We have electric poles on every lane but we are living with load shedding of 20 hours a day.  We have expensive cars and bikes running in the streets of Kathmandu but we don’t have the fuels. We have police force feeding on our tax but we are forced to live with a sense of fear and insecurity. We have schools and colleges but we lack the practical knowledge, which is the need of this century. We have more than thirty lakhs population residing inKathmandu but we lack the motivated citizens, who can think about their country and the capital. We brag ourselves of being alive but we are dead from inside. We are living a life that’s totally wasted.

     Kathmandu, it’s imminent, I owe a great many things to you but, since I am a human being, I also share the same fate as other does. I have my own priorities and my own future to reckon about. I can vent out my frustration in writing but I can do nothing in practical life. I can talk a lot but it all flies away once I get into the race for life. Kathmandu you have discovered yet another talent, which shall also pass on its way making no significant changes and it’s the REALITIES KATHMANDU knows well in advance.