Deepak Rauniyar on Nepal's Gen Z protests and political cinema

Award-winning Nepali filmmaker Deepak Rauniyar discusses his post-war trilogy and how his cinema reflects Nepal's political turmoil, particularly the 2021 protests led by Gen Z. His films, including 'White Sun' (2016) and 'The Sky Is Mine' (2023), explore the aftermath of the Nepalese Civil War (1996-2006) and contemporary social issues. Rauniyar emphasizes that his work is inherently political, drawing from real events to create narratives that resonate with the country's youth-led 'revolution'. He notes that the 2021 protests against the government's handling of the COVID-19 pandemic and political instability were driven by young people using social media, a phenomenon he captures in his cinema. The filmmaker's trilogy addresses themes of identity, trauma, and resistance, with his latest film premiering at international festivals.