i think nepalis have a tendency to 'infantilize' poor people and the media have capitalized on it very nicely

Everyone's writing these dukha filled pieces about how "the state failed him," "society failed him." Maybe there's truth to that. But read between the lines and there's this weird undertone like garib manche haruko decision making capacity nai chaina. The second someone is poor we stop treating them like someone who made choices and start treating them as a passive victim getting blown around by "the system."

Dherai manche le "usko galti thiyo, road ma parking garna hunna vanera thaha thiyo" type comments garxan ani aarko side le same energy bata "gareeb bhako le maafi paunu parxa" jasto kura bhanxan. Both extremes are kind of insulting. Kohi le pani uslai euta adult, aafnai nirnaya line saknee manche ko roop ma treat gardaina.

And don't get me started on the news outlets. Every article has the same formula. Quote the crying wife, quote the poor old parents in the village, throw in a comparison to prem prasad acharya for extra emotional damage, end with a poetic line about "the state's cruelty."It's basically tragedy for clicks at this point. Nobody's doing real investigation into what happened in those 20 minutes before he lit himself on fire, they're just recycling the same photos and quotes across 15 portals because it gets clicks and shares. Kasaile independent reporting gareko dekhina, sabai euta hi copy paste emotional narrative lekhirakheka chan.