Papers by Chudamani Basnet
Studies in Nepali History and Society, 2022
South Asia Research, 2022
Based on interviews with journalists, political party leaders and civil society activists, this a... more Based on interviews with journalists, political party leaders and civil society activists, this article examines and illustrates the strategic capacities of leadership in Nepalese efforts to bolster the movement for democracy. With the help of Bourdieu's concepts of social, cultural and symbolic capitals, the article provides insights into the crucial role of key individuals as leaders and examines their skillful use of activist synergies to spearhead significant political change in Nepal. The study demonstrates how a seemingly resource-poor movement can nevertheless mobilise the popular masses against an autocratic ruler.
Studies in Nepali History and Society, 2021
Dhaulagiri Journal of Sociology and Anthropology, 2021
This study examines the problems and prospects of middle caste politics in Nepal based on similar... more This study examines the problems and prospects of middle caste politics in Nepal based on similar political developments in north India. It investigates the processes of middle caste and class formation in the two countries and goes on to examine demography and upper-caste political strategies. Taking the Federal Socialist Forum Nepal (FSFN) and its trajectory as an example of middle caste political formation, it shows that the middle castes are at a disadvantage in Nepal than their brethren have been in north India. FSFN’s new merger with two political parties recently further shows the difficulty of mobilizing a middle caste political force and mounting a sustained challenge against the political domination of the hill upper castes. This paper also analyzes emerging caste relations in contemporary Nepal.
South Asia Research, 2020
The domestic labour market in India reflects how various classes of women manage their daily live... more The domestic labour market in India reflects how various classes of women manage their daily lives, whether as employers of domestic workers or as employees. The cultural underpinnings of various intersecting relationships implicated in this scenario have remained underresearched in India. Based on a qualitative study in a specific neighbourhood of New Delhi, this article shows that certain cultural strategies pursued by female employers explain their differential behaviour towards specific groups of maids. Observing that these female employers in Delhi prefer Nepali maids over native Indians, even if the latter are willing to work for lower wages, we set out to analyse why and how these employers evaluate immigrant Nepali maids as sharing ‘our’ culture, while native Indians are classified as the cultural ‘other’.
Studies in Nepali History and Society, 2019
South Asia Multidisciplinary Academic Journal (SAMAJ), 2019
In South Asia, marriages are overwhelmingly endogamous. In recent years, new forms of self-initia... more In South Asia, marriages are overwhelmingly endogamous. In recent years, new forms of self-initiated marriages, such as love-marriages and love-arranged marriages, are beginning to emerge among the younger generation. In these new forms, young people exercise considerable choice and agency; however, when the couple crosses caste and ethnic boundaries, parents and kin often take the defiance of the younger generation as instances of dereliction of duty and transgression of family and community values. Cases of intermarriage, thus, offer a unique opportunity to investigate the social and cultural changes a society is undergoing. Based on qualitative research, conducted in southern Nepal, this paper examines the ways Madhesi (plains dwellers) men and Pahadi (hill dwellers) women enter into courtship and negotiate their marriages. We argue that new forms of subjectivity emphasizing individual choice and agency have begun to emerge among the younger generation in Nepal—and South Asia in general. The new subjectivity has unfolded in tandem with structural transformations of the economy, the state, and the culture.
Dhaulagiri Journal of Sociology and Anthropology, Vol. 13, 2019, PP 49-57 , 2019
Scholars have noted deplorable conditions of female migrant workers who suffer several types of c... more Scholars have noted deplorable conditions of female migrant workers who suffer several types of citizenship disabilities as most countries do not extend equal citizenship rights and protections to migrant workers. In addition to this, they are unable to take full advantage of the rights available to them in the host countries because of low cultural and social capital. Further, studies have emphasized how the breakdown of the traditional economy and the penetration of the market in developing societies have forced people, especially from rural areas, to seek low-paying dead-end jobs in the global labor market. Examining Nepali domestic workers in New Delhi, while this research agrees with the existing studies, we also bring to notice the fact that migrant female workers are not always passive victims and that they exercise considerable choice and agency. The case of Nepali domestic workers in New Delhi offers fresh insight into the ways in which migrant women attempt to actively influence and control the work conditions and immediate labour market outcomes. This paper also shows that even if Nepali migrant workers gain in a limited way, they actively collude with their employers to marginalize native domestic workers. In the end, traditional power relations and inequality are reproduced unchallenged.
Studies in Nepali History and Society, 2018
Studies in Nepali History and Society, 2017
Studies in Nepali History and Society, 2016
Ethnic activists in Nepal after the 1990 political change have used two types of mobilization str... more Ethnic activists in Nepal after the 1990 political change have used two types of mobilization strategy regarding culture and religion. The first set of strategy is related to the specific demands on the state. The Nepali state has partly responded to them in recent years by recognizing and offering public holidays on ethnic festivals and, most notably, by declaring Nepal a secular state in 2006. The second set of strategy, which is the focus of this paper, involves inward activism. This activism has aimed at transforming ethnic cultural practices and worldviews from within. Under this scheme, ethnic organizations and activists have called for an ethnic cultural revival as well as the purification of ethnic cultures from what they have termed "Hindu" or Hindu-inflected cultural practices. A non-Hindu imagination and an emphasis on the distinctiveness of ethnic cultures from "Hindu culture" have been one of the major characteristic features of Nepal's Janajàti movement (Gellner, Pfaff-
Constributution to Nepalese Studies, 2015
Inter-caste relations and intermarriages between Dalits and non-Dalits in Nepal have increasingly... more Inter-caste relations and intermarriages between Dalits and non-Dalits in Nepal have increasingly grabbed the attention of media, activists, and scholars. However, the same issue between traditional "water-acceptable pure" caste groups-the high-caste Tagadharis [sacred thread-wearers] and the Matwali [alcohol-drinkers J Janajatis-has not been accorded as much attention. Based on field research in an eastern Tarai town, we argue that the frequency of inter-caste and inter-ethnic marriage among clean-caste groups has dramatically increased over the past few decades as Nepali society undergoes massive economic, political, and cultural changes. Surprisingly, intermarriages are growing at a time when discrete caste and ethnic categories are taken for granted by scholars, activists, and policy makers. This paper further argues that the changes that we are witnessing are fundamental in nature and that individuals, cultures, and categories rarely make a tight fit to give individuals a coherent sense of meaning and identity.
Poverty & Public Policy, 2014
This article constructs a rural livelihood strategy using the Nepal Living Standard Survey Measur... more This article constructs a rural livelihood strategy using the Nepal Living Standard Survey Measurement from 1996 and 2004 and explores the determinants of rural livelihood strategies. This study finds that education, ethnicity, and location play an important role in livelihood diversification outside agriculture, and suggests the importance of keeping children in school for non-farm livelihood diversification and poverty reduction. Important policy implications of the current study include the need for investment in education, as the current literacy rate in Nepal is quite low. Investing in education will help households to diversify their livelihood outside of the farm and pave a way out of poverty.
Studies in Nepali History and Society, 2010
Scholars in the sociology of religion have long believed that cultural and structural changes and... more Scholars in the sociology of religion have long believed that cultural and structural changes and dislocations create demand for new religions. 1 In contrast, rational choice theory (RCT), also known as the "new paradigm" in the sociology of religion, the "religious economy" model, or the "supply side" model, argues that religious demand has been a "constant" feature of human society and that the supply side is key to specific religious developments (Finke and
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Papers by Chudamani Basnet