I was born into an ordinary family in Manpur, Gadhuwa Rural Municipality-7, Dang. Manpur had two types of society – landowners and landless, divided by the Damodar Road (postal highway). To the north were families who owned land. To the south were settlements of Kamaiyas and free Kamaiyas, who were covered in the dust of poverty.

Most of the people spent their lives working as farmers, and despite their hard work, the shadow of hunger always loomed. Although the Tharus are the majority, there are also people from the hill community. They also speak the Tharu language.

I was born in a land-owning community in the north. My grandparents were a joint family. I am proud of having received proper education from an early age. My educational journey began in the village's primary school 'Gyan Kunj'. When it rained, water would leak into the classroom from the thatched roof. In fact, that school was a leaky vessel with more lack than knowledge. There was education there, but there was no depth of education. 

When my father improved his financial situation and admitted me to 'Gyan Jyoti' boarding school, my studies changed. The distance from the lifestyle of my old friends increased. My friends would go to the rivers and fields in the morning, while I would go to school in the morning carrying the torture of tuition and homework.

Sports were our common celebration during Dashain vacation. Picking mangoes in the forest, stealing cucumbers, swimming in the river all day, all these were symbols of our childhood restlessness. 

The stress of homework was my companion during Dashain vacation. The fear of not being able to memorize Khemraj Yadav sir's math formulas and Lal sir's grammar formulas still weighs heavily today. Khemraj sir used to give so much homework that my mind would go crazy. Since I was good at studies (first or second in the class), I didn't have to be beaten much. Other friends, on the other hand, suffered a lot of 'corporal punishment'. They were made to straighten their arms by placing bricks on them, and were beaten with a stick. 

Even amidst the fear of homework, my desire to go to my maternal home never stopped me. The greed for sweet dishes and 'dakshina' attracted me towards my maternal home. The new jeans and shoes worn by my maternal uncle were a ‘status symbol’ for me. My maternal grandfather once bought me a pair of jeans. Those were my first jeans. After the holidays, I went to school wearing those pants. My father scolded me and beat me. That was the first and last beating.

Meeting my friends at school after the holidays was a different experience. New things were shown to them. There was competition among us. We used to share movie CDs (chakkas). We would buy CDs for 20/25 rupees and go to the house of someone who had a TV and watch them.

The classroom of consciousness

Gyan Jyoti taught only up to 5th grade. After 5th grade, my educational destination changed. I went to Shubhtara English Boarding School. That was where the door to my ideological awakening opened. For me, that school was not just a place of study, it was a confluence of good teachers and rebellious ideas.

While studying in that school, I got the opportunity to understand society closely. My mother, Keshav Singh Thakuri sir, who loved to speak and stand on stage since childhood, planted the seeds of debate and poetry. That made me stronger to write and put my point on stage. Bhagwan Das Yadav sir made me aware of exemplary characters like ‘Malcolm X’ and ‘Martin Luther King’. Vikram Rajouri sir used to teach about society and its structure (casteism, socialism). We were only 6 students. There was more discussion than teaching in the class.

My ‘vacations’ started to be a bit different. During my vacations, I started studying those who brought positive changes to society. Essays like Martin Luther King’s ‘I Have a Dream’ became my vacation companions. My father also used to bring magazines and books like ‘Muna’ and ‘Yuva’.

I also got involved in social work. I worked to prevent child marriage and child labor by becoming the vice president of the ‘Children’s Club Network’. There was a campaign to declare a child-friendly VDC in the village. At a young age, I felt my pride increase when I walked with two policemen behind me. 

Being in the children’s club, I was also very interested in the games that took place during the holidays. There was a big field in the middle of our settlement, where the ward office is now built. Friends from both the north and the south used to gather and play there. During festivals, a stage was set up and programs were organized. I remember that Urmila Chaudhary Didi (later a freed Kamaiya leader) used to conduct the program, and her speech and demeanor would inspire us.

Those nights of detention

The holidays that came during the preparation for SLC became the most unforgettable of my life. The rape and murder of Dang’s Sirjana Chaudhary had brought the Tharu movement to its peak in 2071. My father Hiralal Chaudhary was the coordinator of the movement. I also joined the movement through discussions at home.

One day during the movement, there was a clash with the police while stopping a vehicle. The police chased us. We ran around in a hurry. The police came to my house looking for my muddy clothes. I was arrested. I spent seven days in the custody of the Lamhi police station. The environment there was very dirty. The behavior of the police was very cruel. 

The food system in custody was also not good. It was very boring. A newspaper would come. I would read that newspaper 9 times. After that, I got used to reading newspapers. After the efforts of journalist Dashrath Jhimre Dai, I was released from custody. That seven-day detention was another link in my political consciousness. After being released from custody, I gave my SLC. In the village, I was already attracted by Urmila Chaudhary Didi's leadership skills, and in the city, Bunu Tharu Didi's oratory skills. I felt that I should be like them.

I met Bunu Didi when I went to Jhapa to participate in the general convention of the Tharu Kalyankarini Sabha. Didi had the constitution in her hand. When he told me about that, I wanted to study law. But the situation at home was different. Some in the family wanted to become doctors and some wanted to become engineers. When the condition came that ‘If I study in Dang, I will study humanities, if I go to Kathmandu, I will study science’, I chose Kathmandu.

On the second day of arriving in Kathmandu, an earthquake struck on 12 Baisakh. I was standing alone at Baneshwor Chowk with a thousand rupees. I spent two nights in the courtyard of the Parliament Building. On the third day, my brother came and took me away. I started studying science at CCRC College in Kathmandu. But the formula of physics did not touch my heart. I used to fail every term.