Nepal UK
A Gurkha and Nepali cultural contingent will take part in the Lord Mayor's Show in the City of London on Saturday 14 November, a first for the parade according to its organisers. The display will bring Buddhist, Hindu and community traditions to a procession with more than 800 years of history.
The Show sets off from Mansion House at 11am. It is free to watch, involves around 7,000 participants and is due to return to Mansion House by about 2.30pm. The route runs through the City past Bank and St Paul's Cathedral and along Fleet Street to the Royal Courts of Justice, before returning to Mansion House.
The Nepali segment is being organised by Pratibha Nakshatra, an arts and culture group founded in 2017 by Rajendra Khas to promote Nepali heritage and share it with non-Nepali audiences. London businessman Sujan Katuwal MBE is coordinating the participation. The group's director, Lachhuman Gurung, said the team was excited to present Gurkha heritage and Nepali culture at the event for the first time. He said the aim was to convey a message running from the Buddha's peace to the bravery of the Gurkhas.
Choreographer Renuka Magar said more than 70 people will take part. According to the plan she described, a display of the Buddha will lead the group, accompanied by a lama and a Hindu priest to represent both faiths. A Gurkha soldier contingent with a representation of Prithvi Narayan Shah will follow, then Lakhe, Maruni and Jhankri performances. Around a dozen communities will be represented in costume and dance, among them Gurung, Magar, Sherpa, Tamang, Newar, Dhimal, Rai, Limbu, Tharu, Chhetri, Khas, Maithili and Brahmin. The finale is due to be a float carrying a statue of a Victoria Cross-winning Gurkha, borne by 16 volunteers.
The organisers' fundraising page describes the project as a Gurkha Cultural Showcase led by Mr Katuwal, with the Band of the Brigade of Gurkhas, veterans and families, and young people taking part. It says donations will cover float design and construction, costumes, logistics and community outreach. The Band of the Brigade of Gurkhas is reported to lead the whole procession. The claim that this is the first Nepali participation rests with the organisers, and the position of the Nepali contingent in the running order had not been published in the reporting reviewed.
The Lord Mayor's Show is a major civic occasion, and a place in it gives the Nepali community a rare public platform in the capital's financial district. The contingent's imagery draws on Gurkha service and on the cultural range of Nepal's communities, and it follows days of remembrance events in which Nepal's Acting Ambassador, Bipin Duwadi, laid a wreath at the Cenotaph on Remembrance Sunday alongside 17 MPs and peers.
Spectators can watch from the route without tickets, and Bank, St Paul's and Blackfriars are the nearest stations for the outward and return legs. Anyone planning to attend should check the official Lord Mayor's Show website for travel information.
