Weena Pun on the invisibility of women in Nepal’s society and literature: Southasia Review of Books podcast #15

A conversation with the Nepali-born writer on her debut novel ‘Kanchhi’, and capturing the realities of women’s lives in rural Nepal.

https://www.himalmag.com/podcast/weena-pun-kanchhi-women-rural-nepal-literature

Welcome to the Southasia Review of Books Podcast from Himal Southasian, where we speak to celebrated authors and emerging literary voices from across Southasia. In this episode, Shwetha Srikanthan speaks to Weena Pun about her new debut novel Kanchhi (Hachett India, September 2024).

In Torikhola in the western midhills of Nepal, Kanchhi, the only daughter of her single mother, is at odds with the rules and customs of her hamlet and opposes the shame imposed on her ambitions and curiosity. One November morning she leaves home, and that is the last anybody sees of her. A decade later, Maiju still prays for her daughter’s return.

This heart-wrenching coming-of-age story follows Kanchhi and her mother negotiating life and societal pressures in rural Nepal. And as much as the book looks closely at women’s place in Nepali society, it also captures the realities of life in the hamlet Kanchhi is from, and the socio-political reasons for Kanchhi’s disappearance. 

This episode is now available on Spotify: https://spoti.fi/4h0HUJA

Apple Podcasts: https://apple.co/3PJFumC

Youtube: https://youtu.be/uB0DNnfBY94

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