Book Discussion | Kathmandu: A Reader
- Benjamin Linder, Pranaya Rana, Rachana Upadhyaya, Sumina Rai KarkiDetails
30 May 2025/१६ जेठ २०८२ (शुक्रबार, दिउँसो ३ बजे)
Book Discussion
Kathmandu: A Reader
(Martin Chautari, 2025)
Benjamin Linder, Editor (via video recording)
Pranaya Rana, Writer/Journalist
Rachana Upadhyaya, PhD Researcher, University of Bristol
Sumina Rai Karki, Public Policy and Governance Expert
About the book
Kathmandu comprises an intricate collection of spaces, histories, conflicts, and imaginaries. Long a site of contestation, aspiration, and external projection, the city encompasses a bundle of seeming contradictions: ancient and modern, traditional and cosmopolitan, ever-changing and yet consistently itself. In the twenty-first century, research about contemporary Kathmandu—and the Kathmandu Valley more broadly—has proliferated, owing to transformations in the city itself as well as to shifts within the social sciences. The upshot has been a diverse and nuanced literature exploring the intertwined politics, cultures, and geographies of the present city and its surrounds. Collected here for the first time, the articles in this volume offer an exemplary snapshot of current research about a rapidly changing metropolis. Presenting both classic texts and more recent work by young scholars, this book maps the contours of a still-emerging body of work, exploring everything from housing markets to heritage, memory to migration, infrastructure to identity, and much more. The diversity of themes is meant not only to give a broad overview, but also to supply readers with embarkation points for further research. Thus, as both a handy reference and an introductory anthology, Kathmandu: A Reader sustains a crucial, ongoing conversation about the city’s past, present, and future.
About the Speakers
Benjamin Linder is an anthropologist and cultural geographer with interests in urban place-making, transnational mobilities, and cultural transformation in Nepal. He currently serves as the Coordinator for Public & Engaged Scholarship at the International Institute for Asian Studies (IIAS), Leiden University, the Netherlands. He is also an associate editor of Studies in Nepali History and Society.
Pranaya Rana is a writer and journalist. He writes Kalam Weekly, a Nepali current affairs newsletter.
Rachana Upadhyaya is a social science researcher with over 10 years of experience working on gender issues in natural resource management and disaster. In her professional capacity, she is a Research Fellow at the Southasia Institute of Advanced Studies (SIAS), collaborating in policy-focused research. She also works as a Guest Editor for the New Angle Journal, overseeing critical social science publications. In parallel with her professional responsibilities, Rachana is pursuing a doctoral degree at the University of Bristol, where her research critically examines the complex dynamics of urban disaster assemblages. Complementing her research, she also works as a Graduate Teacher at the School of Geography in the university, guiding students in the areas of flood risk and disaster risk reduction (DRR). Rachana’s work is defined by an interdisciplinary approach that integrates urban studies, disaster management, urban political ecology and social science research.
Sumina Rai Karki is a public policy and governance expert with over 15 years of experiences. With an anthropology and public policy background, she has led and managed multiple programs and research projects with special attention to building state and society relationship; gender and social inclusion, especially at the sub-national level. She is currently affiliated with The Asia Foundation Nepal Office.