Filming in Nepal

Nepal is an excellent country for both casual and professional filmmakers. With its diverse and thrilling landscape, Nepal is a mecca for adventure filmmakers. With its diverse culture, art, and rich history, the country offers plenty of stories and inspiration to narrative filmmakers. Below we will discuss why this is.

Nepal is a naturally and culturally diverse country. With over 120 different ecosystems and over 125 ethnic groups, it covers an area of 147181 sq. km. This fact gives an idea of the diversity and richness Nepal possesses. Situated in the lap of the mighty Himalayas, Nepal offers some of the world’s extremes in topography, with 8 of the world’s ten highest mountains above 8000 m. The snow-capped mountains create hundreds of perennial fast-flowing and turbulent rivers which cascade down the hills to the flat plains of Terai. These rivers, coupled with hundreds of lakes, make Nepal the 2nd most affluent country in water resources, proportionate to its size, in the world. The Himalayas host some of the hardiest people in the world, like the Sherpas, Bhotes, Thakalis, and Gurungs. Isolated for many generations due to the rugged topography, ethnic groups in the Himalayas have distinct cultures, traditions, and languages.

The hilly region south of the Himalayan region is vastly covered in deciduous and coniferous forests. It is also rich in hundreds of varieties of medicinal herbs. Most of the country’s major cities, including the capital Kathmandu, lie in this region, and so do the majority of lakes and rivers. Hilly region is the cultural mecca of Nepal. Especially places like Kathmandu, Panauti, Nuwakot, and Makwanpur, where the trade flowed from Tibet into India in ancient times, making the area prosperous in culture. The capital Kathmandu, initially inhabited by the Newar people, is also the cultural capital of Nepal, with 7 UNESCO world heritage sites. The primary inhabitants of the hills are the Brahmins, Chhetris & Newars.

Then to the far south comes the terai region, renowned as the bread basket of Nepal. The hundreds of miles of flat plains in this region have led to agriculture and irrigation on a massive scale. Rivers flowing in from the mountains and the hills cross this region and pass into India to the south. This region is flat and easily accessible and hosts almost half of Nepal’s population and industry. Home to a variety of ethnic groups and languages, Terai is also rich in culture and tradition. Places like Janakpur, Chitwan, Dang, and Birgunj are the cultural centers in Terai. The region is inhabited by the Tharus, Rajbanshis, Thakuris, Musahars, and a dozen other groups, with distinct languages and traditions.