Report Submitted to Culture Minister to Organize and Regulate the Nepali Folk and Dohori Music Sector
News Summary
Reviewed.
- The National Folk and Dohori Song Institute handed over the “Integrated Report on Nepali Folk and Dohori Music Sector–2079” to Culture Minister Ganesh Paudel.
- The report highlights that the folk music sector is growing as both a cultural identity and an economic domain, while raising concerns about distortions and irregularities.
- The report urges the government to provide social security and health insurance for folk artists and to legally recognize Dohori evenings as cultural centers.
May 21, Kathmandu – A comprehensive report prepared demanding the organization, regulation, and artist-friendly development of Nepal’s folk and Dohori music sector has been submitted to Culture, Tourism and Civil Aviation Minister Ganesh Paudel.
Rita Thapa, Chairperson of the National Folk and Dohori Song Institute Nepal, formally handed over the report titled “Integrated Report on Nepali Folk and Dohori Music Sector–2079” to Minister Paudel.
The report highlights that the folk music sector not only represents Nepal’s cultural identity but is also rapidly growing into a multi-billion rupee economic sector.
According to the report, annual business worth billions of rupees occurs through nationwide Dohori evenings, fairs and festivals, digital platforms, and foreign programs.
It further notes that thousands of folk and Dohori artists, technicians, instrumentalists, managers, and workers are directly involved, with millions of families depending on this sector for their livelihoods.
However, the report expresses serious concern about the increasing distortions and irregularities within the folk music sector in recent times.
It points out that viral competitions on YouTube, TikTok, and other social media platforms have begun to erode the originality of folk songs, with an increase in double entendre words in Dohori lyrics and inappropriate stage performances becoming more common.
The report also highlights issues such as labor exploitation, low wages, lack of social security, and health care challenges faced by artists.
It recommends legally recognizing folk artists as “cultural workers,” providing health insurance, social security funds, and special health treatment facilities for them.
The report also calls for developing Dohori evenings not merely as entertainment venues but as cultural centers, creating clear protocols to ensure the safety of female and male artists, and implementing a ‘zero tolerance’ policy against workplace violence.
The report emphasizes that Nepali folk music can be promoted internationally as Nepal’s “soft power.”
It suggests promoting music tourism, homestays, preservation of traditional instruments, and international cultural exchanges to extend Nepal’s global identity.
Through this report, the Institute has urged the government to enact the “Nepali Folk Music Conservation and Artist Social Security Bill–2079.”
Additionally, the report requests the government to recognize the folk and Dohori music sector as a cultural industry and to formulate necessary policies and laws to regulate and dignify it.