Going back to the roots

Singer and researcher Jhuma Limbu has made it her life’s mission to make Nepal’s indigenous music known to the world.

For years, the question that loomed in Jhuma Limbu’s mind was ‘What is Nepali music?’ She first began wrestling with the question when she started pursuing a professional singing career almost 21 years ago. After she started studying music under teachers like Chandan Kumar Shrestha, Amber Gurung, and Victoria Onusrieva, Limbu says she realised the importance of finding the answer to the question.