Much loved for their unique blend of folk and rock music, Nepathya is all set to perform at the O2 Academy in Brixton, UK on August 8 celebrating the auspicious occasion of 200 years of Gurkha service to Britain, and the front man of the band is busy preparing for the same. This will be their second tour to the royal country after having given a historic performance at the Wembley Arena in London in 2013. The band is all set to release their 10th album, too.After much contemplation, this 'Taalko Pani' hitmaker shared with Republica five things not many know about him.
He's an avid reader
He isn't much into English literature but has read so many Nepali books that libraries have run out of books for him! He actually adopted this habit during his younger days. He says he belonged to a circle that encouraged each other to not just display "superficial Nepali traits" but be a Nepali from the core. "This prompted me to read more Nepali books and I eventually developed a taste for it. I mostly enjoy non-fiction," he shares. Also a voracious traveler, he adds that he never forgets a place he's traveled or the story it holds, but would nonetheless forget about books he's read.
Teaching was his first job
Good at painting himself, he decided to work as a children's painting instructor for some time. "I worked as a painting teacher for about seven months and then I quit because I realized that I was the worst teacher! I love children but I just couldn't teach them and I didn't want to do something I wasn't good at." His first salary was Rs 500 with which he bought a kurta suruwal for his sister.
He briefly quit music in 1999
In 1999, Gurung along with his team had gone to Japan for a musical tour. After the tour ended, he and the drummer returned but the rest of the team decided to stay back. This gave birth to gossips about how Gurung, being the front man of the band, didn't try hard enough to bring his teammates back to the country. This whole episode made him feel guilty for not being able to be an assertive team leader. He was so disheartened, he decided to quit music. "Later a friend, Kiran Gurung, stubbornly deposited Rs 160,000 in my bank account and said, 'I want you to use this money for music, but it's all up to you...use it for whatever you like.' And he wasn't the only person who wanted me to get back to the music scene. Perhaps it's the love and trust of my loved ones that brought me back to music," he reminisces.
His greatest fantasy is to attend a Pink Floyd concert
He grew up listening to The Beatles, Led Zeppelin, and Pink Floyd. "I've always enjoyed psychedelic music, and I believe Pink Floyd is the best of all. Their music is unique and simply amazing. My greatest fantasy is to attend their concert some day," he says
He detests gambling
"I don't like juwa or tass. I might have played some while with friends in college but I soon grew out of it. The notion of sitting down for hours with limited movement is too daunting for me to begin with," he says, adding that he'd rather travel or read books in his leisure.
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