Shyam Nepali’s madal shop is in Saugal, Patan. A roadside shop, Shyam’s words are often swallowed partly or in whole by the sound of the traffic outside.
When a festive procession passes behind his shop, he suddenly stops what he is doing, listening carefully, his kind eyes suddenly distant, perhaps reminiscing about a different time.
“Bhimsen jatra”, is all he says by way of explanation before he starts working on a madal again.
