The Bhimsen Tower: Kathmandu's Watchtower of Power

In this episode, Lucas and Luna climb the storied Bhimsen Tower—Dharahara—in the heart of Kathmandu. Built in 1832 by Mukhtiyar Bhimsen Thapa, this nine-story minaret was both a watchtower and a symbol of Rana-era ambition. We explore its origins under the Shah dynasty, its role in the 1833 earthquake, and its reconstruction after the 2015 quake. Along the way, we meet the figures tied to its history: Queen Lalit Tripura Sundari, who commissioned it; Jang Bahadur Rana, who renovated it; and the ordinary Nepalis who used it as a monument and a meeting point. The episode reflects on how a single structure can encode a nation's shifting power structures—from the Gorkha conquest to the Rana oligarchy to modern Nepal. We also touch on the British traveler Henry Ambrose Oldfield's description of the tower in the 1850s, and the folk memory that survives in the Kathmandu Valley today. Join us for a vertical tour through Nepal's modern history, one staircase at a time.

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