Teen's viral plea prompts calls for bridge repair in Nepal village

A simple video message from a 15-year-old Nepali girl, pleading with former Prime Minister Pushpa Kamal Dahal to repair a broken village bridge, has captured national attention and gone viral online. Sadiksha Oli directly addressed the Maoist leader, known as Prachanda, in a video posted Sunday, questioning his absence after winning an election in her Rukum East constituency.

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Hello, grandfather Prachanda! Where are you? You won the election from Rukum East and left. Just look at the state of our bridge. It is broken, and we have to cross the stream on foot. It could sweep away our cattle, or even us. Children also use this route to get to school. They could be swept away too. So please build us a bridge.

Oli, a tenth-grader, filmed herself by the Domai stream in Chunbang, showing the dilapidated state of the bridge, which collapsed two months prior. She expressed concern for the safety of villagers, children en route to school, and livestock, all of whom are forced to cross the stream on foot. The video quickly garnered over 1.3 million views and significant engagement across social media platforms within 48 hours.

This viral plea stems from a daily reality for Oli and her community. The broken bridge is a crucial link to the ward office, school, and district headquarters. With the monsoon season approaching, crossing the swollen stream poses an increasing danger. Oli mentioned that she was motivated to make the video while grazing cattle, recalling Prachanda's election win in the area.

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We use this bridge every day to cross the stream near our homes. It has been broken for two months, but nobody has repaired it.

Oli, who has only been creating videos for about a month with her brother's help, has found unexpected success. Her drone footage, used to locate missing cattle and search for mushrooms, has also attracted hundreds of thousands of views. Her ability to capture compelling local content and her direct appeal to a prominent political figure have resonated widely, highlighting a persistent issue of local infrastructure neglect.

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He is about the age of a grandfather, so I called him ‘Baje’ [Nepali term of respect for an older man] and asked him to build the bridge.