When a joke fuels division: Casual hate speech and the Gen Z revolution in Nepal

Hate speech is not uncommon in Nepal. The most insidious forms of hate speech in this country do not just arrive as a slogan during protests or political campaigns. Sometimes, they quietly slip into daily life as a laugh, which is supposedly “harmless humour” and in “good faith.” In what forms does this hate manifest?

It is framed as a casteist nickname, such as “Bhaiya”– a derogatory term used in Nepal to belittle Madhesi men or “Dhoti”– a slur that mocks traditional South Asian attire and extending to Madhesi identity exchanged nonchalantly in classrooms, a slur muttered on a microbus, a viral TikTok skit mocking regional accents.