How writer Prajwal Parajuly’s nephew’s birthday celebrations led to his new book for children

In Karma and Lola, his latest book of fiction, author Prajwal Parajuly goes back to the Himalayas, only this time it’s for young readers. After The Gurkha’s Daughter (2012) – a collection of short stories offering glimpses into the life of Nepali-speaking communities and Land Where I Flee (2013) – his debut novel focusing on an estranged family of an octogenarian matriarch from Gangtok, Sikkim, 12 years later, Parajuly has ventured into a different genre.

Three significant events led to this literary detour. One: he ate cake. Two: he spent six years writing a historical novel, which his family of lawyers strongly advised him to shelve (and he did). And three: a social media post that unexpectedly nudged him into writing.

If the arithmetic seems off, Parajuly does not mind clarifying. Speaking after a jog through historic Mayfair in London, he recounted: “On February 10, 2023, I posted on social media a photo of myself, in a tie too short for me, smiling over an assortment of pastries. ‘Nephew turned 11,’ the caption read. ‘I ate cake. Tie became noose.’”

He had just flown into London ten days ago to celebrate his nephew’s birthday. “That meant I had come out of six months of sugar embargo. I tend to deprive myself...

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