Nepal swears in ex-rapper as new prime minister. 1 hour ago. Kelly Ngand. Koh Ewe. AFP via Getty Images. Rapper-turned-politician Balendra Shahhas been sworn in as Nepal’s prime minister after a landslide victory in the country’s first election since last year’s youth-led protests.. The 35-year-old’s rise marks an important shift in Nepali politics. His promise of change resonated with an electorate that was angry at corruption, nepotism and elite rule.. Before taking office on Friday, Shah, popularly known as Balen, released a song filled with optimism about Nepal’s future.. “Undivided Nepali, this time history is being made,” he rapped in a track that garnered more than two million views within hours of its release.. The song harks back to his roots in the underground rap scene, where he used musicto call out corruption and other social problems in Nepal.. After just three years as mayor of the capital Kathmandu, Shah teamed up with the Rastriya Swatantra Party (RSP) as its prime-ministerial candidate, scoring a decisive victory in general elections this month.. His supporters see him as a symbol of change and a break from the failings of Nepal’s old guard. But some question whether the four-year-old RSP is capable of making good on its bold pledges.. The rebellious rapper. Shah was born in 1990 in Naradevi, Kathmandu, and is his parents’ youngest son. His father is an Ayurvedic practitioner and his mother stayed at home to bring up the family. Shah is married and lives with his wife and daughter.. After leaving school he graduated with engineering degrees in Kathmandu and later in the southern Indian state of Karnataka.. In 2013, he shot to fame after winning a popular rap battle in Nepal, with sharp verses that carried the frustration of a generation that felt suppressed and abandoned.. Shah went on to release several popular songs which criticised corruption and social inequality in the Himalayan nation. He cut a distinctive figure in the music videos with his trademark square black sunglasses, a black blazer and black trousers.. One of his best-known hits, Balidan, has amassed 14m views on YouTube.. The song title means sacrifice, and part of its lyrics go: “While we sell our identity abroad government employees get 30k salary and have properties in 30 different places. Who will pay the debt of people working seven seas away?”. In 2022, the political newbie won Kathmandu’s mayoral race by a landslide as an independent candidate, triumphing over parties which had dominated elections for decades.. His tenure as mayor was marked by efforts to clean up the city, preserve indigenous heritage, and a crackdown on corruption. He also started a controversial campaign to bulldoze illegal buildings – which helped ease traffic but also drew criticism from street vendors and residents in informal settlements.. The rise to power. Shah’s message continued to resonate with the country’s youth during last September’s protests, in which 77 people died –
