In many parts of the world, people still believe in feeding children with book knowledge and judging adults on the basis of the degrees they’ve earned. But, times have changed and college degrees don’t matter as much if you have the skills to sell your talent. 

Bikas Neupane, 27, dropped out of college to pursue his dream of becoming a filmmaker. While studying films at Oscar International College, Sukedhara, he realized that he needed to reach out of his course books to make impactful films. 

Originally from Nepalgunj, Bikas had come to Kathmandu to study and make films. Nevertheless, he dropped out from the college in 2011 in his first year because he felt constrained. “I decided to quit college because I felt I was not getting enough exposure to practical knowledge. But, Oscar College gave me the opportunity to meet inspiring artists like Govinda Prasad Khanal,” said Bikas.

Bikas grew up around the aesthetic beauty of Nepalgunj, which worked as a prominent inspiration for him to make feature films in the settings of tarai region, especially the rural part of Nepal. As a result, most of his works like ‘Silence of Rickshaw’, ‘Lachhamaniya’ and other short movies are influenced by the surrounding of his hometown. 

Bikas’s ‘Silence of Rickshaw’ is a short film based on a true tragic story of a Rickshaw puller. Similarly, ‘Lachhamaniya’ is a story based in rural tarai, and it won the Audience Choice Award at the Ekadeshma International Short Film Festival 2017. The movie was also showcased at KIMFF 2017.

“Many people had suggested me to make a film on city life, but I couldn’t make such a film because I don’t feel connected with the urban setting,” said by Bikas.

Bikas’s ‘New Recruit’ and ‘Shuvaarambha’ won the Best Movie Award at the Short Film Competition organized by Nepal Army in 2011 and 2013, respectively. While he is the scriptwriter, he has also played the lead actor in both the films. 

After various projects that worked as stepping stones for Bikas, he landed the role as an actor and a part of pre-production team in the film ‘Fitkiree’. He also worked as the chief assistant director in movies ‘Utsav’, ‘Jhumkee’ and ‘Dokh’. His recent achievement is being a part of a reality-show called ‘Himalaya Roadies’ as a producer. 

For Bikas, the people that he meets during his journey are the sources of inspiration. That is why, he loves to travel. He believes that traveling broadens his mind and gives him positive vibes. “But I don’t travel to search stories for films because it is secondary to me, while interacting and sharing experiences with different people is my priority when I am on the road,” said Bikas.