From rapper to mayor to PM hopeful: Balen Shah’s Karnataka connection

In 2022, he contested the Kathmandu mayoral elections as an unbiased candidate and received with over 61,000 votes, defeating rivals from established political events.
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Kathmandu Mayor Balen Shah, seen as a possible frontrunner to turn out to be Nepal’s subsequent Prime Minister after former PM Okay.P. Sharma Oli stepped down, has a Karnataka connection. Shah earned his Grasp’s diploma in Structural Engineering (M.Tech.) from Visvesvaraya Technological College (VTU), Belgaum.

The 35-year-old, a civil engineer by coaching and a former rapper and composer, entered politics after his scholar years.

Shah can be identified for banning the screening of the Hindi movie Adipurush in Kathmandu. The film, primarily based on the Hindu epic Ramayana, referred to Sita — known as Janaki within the movie — as “India’s daughter.” Shah strongly objected, noting that Hindus in Nepal consider Sita was born in Janakpur, close to Kathmandu.

In a 2023 submit on X (previously Twitter), Shah declared: “No Hindi movie will probably be allowed to be proven in Kathmandu Metropolitan Metropolis till the phrases ‘Janaki is an Indian daughter’ in Adipurush are corrected not solely in Nepal but additionally in India. Three days have been given to appropriate this.”

Shah was born in Kathmandu in 1990 to a Newar Buddhist household of Maithil Madhesi origin and was notable within the hip-hop scene. In 2022, he contested the Kathmandu mayoral elections as an unbiased candidate and received with over 61,000 votes, defeating rivals from established political events.

The mayor has since constructed a powerful following, significantly amongst Nepal’s Gen Z voters — these underneath 28 years of age in 2025.

In a submit on X right this moment, he wrote, “Pricey Gen Z, your killer’s resignation has arrived. Now be affected person! The lack of the nation’s individuals and property means the lack of your and our property. Your technology must lead the nation. Additionally, be ready to barter with the military chief. However bear in mind – Parliament should be dissolved earlier than negotiations can happen.”