Giving Hope To Wounded Dreams: Dhurmus Suntali Foundation

Where Nepal was building its foundation to become a strong country, the devastating earthquake of April 25, 2015 shattered the dreams of most of the Nepalese people. Many people lost their lives, lost house, and many were left with the wounds they will have lifetime. People of different parts of Nepal were homeless and foodless for many months as government was unable to provide them service in time. In such difficult time, Dhurmus Suntali Foundation offered their helping hands to those needy people in various possible ways.

The famous Nepali comedian couple Sitaram Kattel and Kunjana Ghimire aka “Dhurmus Suntali” is popular not only for their amazing acting skills but also for their philanthropic activities. Their latest project Musahar Basti was handed over to the Musahar community on the auspicious occasion of New Year 2074. Before this, the duo had also built Pahari Basti in Panchkhal, Kavre and Giran Chaur Basti in Giranchaur, Sindhupalchowk. All these settlements were established through Dhurmus Suntali Foundation, founded after the disastrous earthquake in 2015.

The duo was in America when the disaster took place. Cancelling 18 shows, they returned back to Nepal and devoted themselves completely in relief work. The duo began their philanthropic journey by constructing an integrated Model Village in Pahari Basti, Danda Gaun, Kavrepalanchowk. With the help of locals and army personals, the project was completed successfully.

Then they shift their focus to rebuild the Giran Chaur Village at Melamchii Municpality, Sindhupalchowk, thus established Dhurmus Suntali Foundation. The foundation built 65 homes whose estimated budget was NRS 35 million however; it took 51.45 million to complete the project. The homes were handed to locals by President, Bidhya Bhandari on 8th of October, 2016.

Eventually, they started to work on rebuilding Mushar Basti in Bardibas. The foundation built fifty houses, a community building, a view tower and 2 public toilets. The construction work was inaugurated by famous comedian pair Haribansha Acharya and Madan Krishna Shrestha on January 9 and the houses were handed to earthquake victims on April 14.

Though a huge budget was allocated by the government for earthquake victims, relief works were carried out in a very slow way. None of the government department seemed interested in uplifting the life of victims. But, Dhurmus Suntali knew change can start with a small effort, it’s just a matter of willingness. Their objective was to give a new better life to the victims. They did not just give them a home to reside but taught everyone that unity can make impossible possible. The village they built consists of each and every basic facility.

Lots of NGOs and government department promised victims to provide them with relief as soon as possible but none of their promises were delivered. Without the help of government or any other big names, Dhurmus Suntali foundation provided roof to the earthquake victims considering all the Nepalese brothers and sisters. The couple is also a cleanliness ambassador of Nepal and were seen multiple times conducting cleanliness programs in which they both actively participated.