Suman Pokhrel

Suman Pokhrel is a Nepali poet, lyricist, playwright, translator and artist. He was born on September 21, 1967 in Mills Area, Biratnagar, Nepal to engineer Mukunda Prasad Pokhrel & Bhaktaa Devi Pokhrel, a government employee. The two children of fellow politicians Bidhyanath Pokhrel and Ganeshprasad Rijal were married in Varanasi in India, and were living in a government quarters in Mills Area in Biratnagar, Nepal; who moved to city area of Biratnagar after his birth.

Suman Pokhrel attended a government owned Kindergarten in Biratnagar, until he was five. He was brought to his ancestral village of Kachide in Dhankuta at the age of seven and raised there by his paternal grandmother. His paternal grandfather Bidhyanath Pokhrel was a poet and a politician. His grandfather’s library, which contained works in Nepali, Hindi, and classical Sanskrit, had a significant impact on how early in life he was exposed to literature. He returned to Biratnagar at the age of twelve to live with his parents. His father, an engineer by profession and an avid polyglot reader with a passion for art and literature, served as Pokhrel’s mentor.

After completing his university degrees in science, law and business management; Suman Pokhrel briefly worked in Nepal government as a Section Officer. Afterward, he worked for Plan International and other similar international non-governmental organizations for several years.

In 1999, Suman Pokhrel published his first book Shoonya Mutuko Dhadkanbhitra, which was a collection of his poetry written in Nepali language. He published his second book Hazaar Aankhaa Yee Aankhaa Ma in 2003, and Jeevanko Chheubaata, the third one in 2009. He recorded Taj Mahal and My Love (2010), a poem from his second collection of poetry. Later he recorded Na Ta Din Bhayo (2013), Pagliyera Pokhiyun Jhain (2015), Dharti Aakash Bhanda Para (2015), Kati Mitha (2019), and several other songs in his lyrics in vocal of various singers and music composition of Bed Nidhi Poudel.

His works have been translated into several languages across countries, and are appeared in notable journals worldwide. He wrote Yajnaseni, a play based on the Sanskrit epic The Mahabharata, which was premiered in Irvin in Dallas, TX in USA in 2016. The Unheard Plea in his lyrics and music composition and vocal of Sudha Raghuraman was first performed by Neha Mondal Chakravarty in New York in 2018, which was recorded a year later. He directed the series Kavyaarohan from 2019 to 2022.

Suman Pokhrel translated works of several writers and poets from around the world into languages like English, Nepali, Hindi and Urdu. He published his Nepali translation of William Shakespeare’s theatrical play ‘The Tempest’ in 2018. In the same year, he published other two volumes of poetry collections translated into Nepali.

The poetry of Suman Pokhrel is taught as part of the literary curriculum in several universities across South Asian countries. Those who appreciate Suman Pokhrel’s poetry have had verses tattooed on their body parts. Writers regularly cite from his writings in their write-ups and people frequently quote verses from his poetry and share on social media like Instagram, Twitter and Facebook.

Suman Pokhrel was awarded SAARC Literary Award, a prestigious South Asian award in the field of art, literature and culture in 2013; and again awarded in 2015 making him the sole personality to receive this award twice.