Hey guys, I just heard from a "bishwasta sutra" in kathmandu that 25 members of Hits FM staff quit yesterday. The mass resignation was led by long time hits fm stalwart Deepesh Shrestha. I hear the move was made after someone else among the team was about to be declared as the new MD.

Similarly, Editior Akhilesh Upadhyay and the whole editorial team of Nation weekly has also quit.

Two mass resignation on two leading media ...... a coincidence? Anyone else has more details on this? Please fill us in on these media market bombshells. Anyone in the know in Kathmandu .. ....

Would Mr.Akhilesh Upadhyay or Mr.Suman Pradhan (Nation) or Mr.Deepesh Shrestha (HITS FM) like to post their comments on this please?

The news of AKhilesh's resignation has taken me by surprise. Is it a reliale information???

Hoina hola.. Dautari le yo news kaha padheko/suneko?

Having worked for HITS FM for 2 yrs, I'd like to know the details..... if the news is really true. C'mon what're the facts? Anyone?

Haven't heard anything of the sort from Akhilesh... could be hearsay, perhaps?!

If the news about the Nation is true, it would be unfortunate! The magazine is one of my favorite, with chance to read articles from writers likes Swarnim, Onta, Suman, Deepak Thapa, and Samrat!

I heard the news about Nation from a Nation insider.

As for hitsfm, I have not heard anything from any of the "insiders" but I have heard that hitsfm is currently playing nonstop music only. Those in Kathmandu please confirm. So far, I have not had any confirmations of hitsfm fiasco.

Sad to hear about Akhilesh & Company's departure from The Nation newsweekly (ASSUMING, of course, that Dautari's postings above are true).

As a reader, I will miss reading Jogendra Keshari Ghimire's contrarian, analytical, risk-taking and well-written pieces on the intersection between law and Nepai society.

Or maybe not, if Jogendra continues to write either for that newsweekly or others.

oohi
ashu

Just got my copy of Nation for this week... Akhilesh in his 'Last Page' says:

"This is my forty-second editorial for Nation Weekly and the final one, I am afraid?"

So, he certainly is leaving.

HM

Now that Harvestmoon has posted the confirmation, the question is:

Why would Akhilesh -- a former Sajha contributor -- leave The Nation (which -- with
a few other Sajha contributors as columnists and letter-writers and even
team-members-- at times reads like a much more sophisticated, professional and America-returned cousin of this Web site!) after only 10 months or so on the job, especially
since everyone's eyes were on him (as in waiting to see what he would do next) after
he was denied the top position at The Kathmandu Post daily in 2003?

If Sitara -- to take one prominent example who'd been, if Paramendra Bhagat is to
be believed (and I don't), soliciting articles for The Nation in the US -- did not know of Akhilesh's leaving The Nation as of 1/30/2005, then, his departure must be seen as a sudden, if perplexing, event.

Let me foolishly hazard a few POSSIBLE reasons:

a) Aklhilesh's got a much better job somewhere else (and wants to take the team along
with him).

b) He's tired of doing the weekly thing (NB: It can be very draining to put out a
magazine EVERY WEEK in Kathmandu), and wants to call it quits to spend time
with family and maybe gaze at the big blue sky for some time.

c) He (& his team) has had a fall-out with the publishers over money.

d) He (& his team) has had a fall-out with the publishers over what to publish
and what not to publish (i.e. the content).

e) He (& his team) has had, well, personality clashes with the publishers (notably
Sunil and Ajay).

Pick your ANSWER:

I: A only.
II. B only
III. C, D, & E (in various combinations) only.
IV. None of the above; but "the truth is out there!"

PS: Any one of the options above is a COMMON enough of a reason to leave a job in
a Nepali media organisation.

oohi
ashu

Ashu dai,

I heard that "B" was ONE OF the reasons behind the fall out. Still haven't got the details yet.

As for the hitsfm fallout, I had the confirmation from one of the staff members who is still IN and it seems that the biggest reason was a POWER STRUGGLE. (There was a similar mass resignation at Radio HBC a few years ago - for the same reason - after Mr. Harisharan Lamichhane was appointed to spearhead the radio station.)

I opt for...

III. C, D, & E (in various combinations) only.

[More so E than C and/or D].

This may interest only HITS FM employees (former & present). I wonder if the many other stations & publications have anything to do with it. I mean, there are also a few TV channels now. When HITS FM was about a yr old, people were lining up to work there. Maybe it's the options that are available to the presenters now! I remember when I went to Kantipur FM to interview for a job, after they published ads & had not gone on air yet, I was interviewed by Steve Cabb. He asked me if I had any radio experience. At that time, Radio Nepal was the only station! Hell, from where would I have experience? That was the only question I was asked and rejected. I guess, it's not the situation anymore!!!

Midwestdude, from what I gather, other stations had nothing to do with this and it was entirely an internal power struggle - which began, in my opinion, in 2001 when former MD Mr.Sonny Shrestha resigned and former Hits FM RJ Rita Limbu had to leave.

Hello, Poonte dai, how are you? Long time no chitchat. I have lost your phone number but I will find out (yes I can) and will give you a ring. Cheers. BTW, your first write up for Nation was good. (I never got round to congratulating for that .. here goes .. albeit late, eh?)

Why dont HITS FM launch a mass hiring campagign ? Anyone is free to leave any company when they want to if they dont like it, unless they are under some contract to work for the company until specific time period stated in thier contract with thecompany.