Nepali choir tells of UK ordeal

HIMALAYAN NEWS SERVICE

KATHMANDU: Members of a Nepali choir, which was accused of
absconding from Heathrow Airport, England, on April 27, today
recounted their bitter experience.

The 10-member choir returned home on May 5 after successfully
participating in the Cornwall International Male Voice Choral
Festival.

According to Bimal Sherchan, one of the members, they had to
wait at the Indian Airlines office at Heathrow Airport for their
lost instruments without any success and then waited for hours at
Terminal 3 for the festival organisers to turn up.

“We contacted a Nepali known to us at Central London and he
provided us lodging,” said team leader Laxman Shesh.

“As the organisers were at the programme venue, our calls to the
office were not answered on April 27, then we contacted Nepalaya
Lok Kalamancha in Nepal the next day and collected the mobile
number of festival director Peter Davies. We called him on April 29
and we were picked up by his men six hours later and reached
Cornwall at midnight,” said Sherchan. Laxman Shesh confirmed that
everybody had returned on May 5.

“Embarrassed by the rumour of absconding, we shortened our stay
there by five days. We also cancelled our folk song programmes for
Nepalis there,” added RG Kharel, another member.

“With the guitars and the Madals getting cooled by the climate,
our performance was not as good as expected, however, the audience
commended our performance,” said Kharel.