Swastima Khadka

Swastima Khadka (In Devanāgarī: श्वस्तिमा खड्का) (born 4 July 1995) is a Nepalese actress who predominantly works in Nepali cinema. She has appeared in Love Love Love (2017), Chhakka Panja 2 (2017), Nai Nabhannu La 5 (2018), and Bulbul (2019).

Swastima Khadka
Khadka in 2019
Born	(1995-07-04) 4 July 1995 Kathmandu, Nepal
Citizenship	Nepalese
Occupation	Actress, model
Home town	Kathmandu, Nepal
Spouse(s)	Nischal Basnet (m. 2016)

Khadka debuted as an actress in the 2015 teen romance Hostel Returns, for which she was nominated for the National Film Awards for Best Supporting Actress. This initial success was followed by a series of commercially successful films. After her debut, she appeared in the 2017 romantic-drama Love Love Love, which received positive reviews from critics. In 2017, Khadka appeared in social drama film Chhakka Panja 2, which became commercially successful, grossing 60 million Nepalese rupees within the first six days of release, and became the second highest-grossing Nepali film. That same year, Khadka starred in drama film Bulbul. The film was selected as the Nepalese entry for the Best International Feature Film at the 92nd Academy Awards, but it was not nominated. Her performance in the film was met with critical acclaim.

Before venturing into Nepali cinema, she participated in Miss Teen Nepal at the age of 17. She has been married to Nischal Basnet since 2016.

Personal and early life

Swastima Khadka was born on 4 July 1995 in Kathmandu, Nepal.[1] She completed her School Leaving Certificate (SLC) from Birendra Sainik Awasiya Mahavidyalaya, Bhaktapur.[1] Khadka holds a three-year diploma in architectural engineering from the Thapathali Campus.[2] At the age of 17, she participated in the Nepali national beauty pageant Miss Teen Nepal.[3][4] She told The Nepali Man that Miss Nepal was "a bit far-fetched for her" and described the experience as "a stepping stone" for her.[3]

On 14 December 2015, Khadka and film director Nischal Basnet became engaged in the presence of close relatives.[5] They married on 17 February 2016, in a private ceremony held at the Royal Events Banquet and Restaurant in Tinkune.[5] The couple have been nicknamed "Rastryia Dai and Bhauju".[6]

Career

2015–2017: Film debut

In 2015, Khadka debuted as a film actress in Suraj Bhusal's Hostel Returns, where she starred alongside Sushil Shrestha, Najir Hussain, and Sunil Rawal.[2][7] In the film, she played Alina, who is in a love triangle with two boys in her school.[7] For Hostel Returns, she was nominated for Best Supporting Actress in the National Film Awards.[8] For her second film, she appeared in Dipendra K. Khanal's romantic-drama Love Love Love (2017)[9][10] where she portrayed Samriddhi, a girl whose childhood friend's love for her is not reciprocated.[9] Her portrayal of Samriddhi was praised by critics,[11] and The Himalayan Times wrote, "Khadka's act is appealing. Her body language, gestures and dialogue delivery are brilliant."[9] Khadka also made a guest appearance in "Kutu Ma Kutu" (2017).[12] Her appearance in the song was praised by audiences and critics.[13] The reviewer for Nepali Sansar wrote, "Swastima Khadka danced gracefully to this catchy Nepali number. Her sweet smile and performance will flash before us every time we listen to Kutu Ma Kutu".[14] The song became the first Nepali music video to reach 100 million views on YouTube.[15]

Later in 2017, Khadka appeared in Deepa Shree Niraula's social drama film Chhakka Panja 2.[16] In the film, she plays Akansha, a student who wants to travel to Australia to study but struggles with the International English Language Testing System exam required to enter the country.[16][17] The Kathmandu Post reported that Chhakka Panja 2 earned around 60 million Nepalese rupees within the first six days of release[18] and went on to become the second highest-grossing Nepali film.[19] When asked about her experience working with the cast members of Chhakka Panja 2, Khadka said, "Ah, I got to learn a lot! They have already been in the field for more than 20 years; they obviously know a lot more than I do. And not only did I learn stuff about movies while working with them, but also understand other areas like dealing with the media, interacting with them… everything! I admit, I get overshadowed by them sometimes but then, rather than a disadvantage, I like to think of it as an advantage to stay in the sideline and absorb what I can from them. After all, they are the superstars!".[3]

2018–present: Nai Nabhannu La 5 and Bulbul

Swastima Khadka (left pictured in 2019) promoting Bulbul with Mukun Bhusal (right).

In 2018, Khadka starred in Bikash Raj Acharya's romantic-drama Nai Nabhannu La 5, the fifth installment in the Nai Nabhannu La film series.[20][21] In the film, Khadka plays Ranjana, a teenage girl who shares a romance with Neer, played by debutant actor Abhisek Nepal.[22] Her performance was praised by Diwakar Pyakurel of Onlinekhabar, who wrote, "Khadka has acted as stubborn late teen; and she does it quite well."[22] The film surpassed two crore (20 million) Nepalese rupees (approximately US$163,500 in 2020) in its first weekend.[23] Later in the same year, Khadka had a minor role in the film Chhakka Panja 3 where she played the role of a Brahmin girl who becomes the love interest of a Janajati boy.[24] Later, she appeared in Jai Bhole (2018) alongside Khagendra Lamichhane, Saugat Malla, and Buddhi Tamang.[25] The film focuses on Jai (Khagendra Lamichhane) who falls for Nisha (Swastima Khadka), but Nisha's sworn brother interferes with them.[25]

In 2019, Khadka appeared alongside Mukun Bhusal in Binod Paudel's drama film Bulbul.[26] In the film, Khadka plays Ranakala, a student driver in Kathmandu.[26] The film was selected as the Nepalese entry for the Best International Feature Film at the 92nd Academy Awards, but it was not nominated.[27] About her performance, she told The Nepali Man, "Out of all my six movies, I received maximum appreciation [for] Bulbul. So this does mean that somewhere there is a solid part of [the] audience that [does] enjoy these independent movies. Bulbul went onto its fourth week. In this time, for any movie to run into its second week is a very good response. So, Bulbul being on its fourth is a huge feat in itself. That is why I am pretty sure that an audience who [does] understand such art movies is growing".[3] Khadka's performance was met with critical acclaim. Prakriti Kandel, writing for Nepali Times, praised her, saying:[26]

Swastima Khadka's authentic portrayal of Ranakala is refreshing and captivates. Her hardships are writ large in her sombre expressions and sharp dialogues which give us a nuanced, all-round portrait of her complex psychology. One can't help but root for this simple, independent girl as she makes a living in a difficult city. She is fierce at her job, tender as a mother, understanding as a friend, struggling as a wife. But overall Ranakala embodies the female shakti.

— Prakriti Kandel, Nepali Times

After Bulbul, Khadka appeared in Hajar Juni Samma, and Ghamad Shere the same year. In Hajar Juni Samma, Khadka plays Avantika, a medical student from Sikkim.[28] Sunny Mahat of The Annapurna Express described the film as "a movie you’d want to watch with your female friends, just to see them cringe at the creepy old man trying to find a match for his son".[28] Rupak Risal of Moviemandu wrote that Khadka had "done justice to [her] role".[29] In Ghamad Shere, where Khanka starred as Gauri, an English teacher and sister-in-law of the main character Shere, played by Khadka's husband Nischal Basnet. Abhimanyu Dixit of The Kathmandu Post criticized the decision to cast Basnet and Khadka in the same film as siblings-in-law, writing, "To cast Swastima as a reel-life sister-in-law to her real-life husband Nischal might have seemed like a good idea, or something ‘different’ on paper, but it hardly works. Both actors try hard to be consistent with their respective characters but it's not enough to make us believe that they’re anything except Nischal and Swastima, the real-life couple."[30]

Filmography

Year	Film	Role	Notes	Ref(s)
2015	Hostel Returns	Elina		[2]
2017	Love Love Love	Samriddhi		[9]
2017	Prem Geet 2		Guest appearance	[31]
2017	Dui Rupaiya	Dancer		[12]
2017	Chhakka Panja 2	Aakankshya		[16]
2018	Chhakka Panja 3			[24]
2018	Jai Bhole	Nisha		[32]
2018	Nai Nabhannu La 5	Anjana/Ranjana		[20]
2019	Bulbul	Ranakala		[27]
2019	Hajar Juni Samma	Avantika		[28]
2019	Ghamad Shere			[30]
2020	Chapali Height 3			[33]

Awards and nominations

List of accolades received by Swastima Khadka

Year	Award	Category	Film	Result	Ref(s)
2016	National Film Awards	Best Supporting Actress	Hostel Returns	Nominated	[8]
2019	SAARC Film Festival	Best Performance	Bulbul	Won	[34]
	National Film Awards	Best Actor in a Leading Role (Female)		Won	[35][36]

References

1. Nepal, Anand (15 October 2014). "Swastima Khadka, Biography of Hostel Return actress". Nepali Actress. Archived from the original on 14 November 2019. Retrieved 16 April 2020.
2. "5 things about Swastima Khadka". My Republica. 27 March 2017. Archived from the original on 24 April 2020. Retrieved 15 April 2020.
3. Subedi, Abhigya (1 May 2019). "Swastima Khadka: On The Art Side Of Things". The Nepali Man. Archived from the original on 15 April 2020. Retrieved 16 April 2020.
4. Nepal, Anand (7 August 2017). "Swastima Khadka – a new sensation in Nepali film industry". Nepali Actress. Archived from the original on 19 November 2019. Retrieved 16 April 2020.
5. "Nischal, Swastima tie the knot". The Himalayan Times. 18 February 2016. Archived from the original on 15 October 2019. Retrieved 16 April 2020.
6. "Power Couple: Swastima Khadka & Nischal Basnet". Party Nepal. 9 December 2018. Archived from the original on 24 May 2020. Retrieved 24 May 2020.
7. "Revisiting memorable hostel days". The Himalayan Times. 22 August 2015. Archived from the original on 15 April 2020. Retrieved 15 April 2020.
8. "क्लासिक र प्रेमगीतको चर्को भिडन्त, 'पशुपति प्रसाद र कबड्डी कबड्डी' पनि कम छैनन्". Online Khabar (in Nepali). 10 August 2016. Archived from the original on 15 April 2020. Retrieved 15 April 2020.
9. "This love gets you emotional ... in the end Love Love Love". The Himalayan Times. 15 April 2017. Archived from the original on 15 April 2020. Retrieved 15 April 2020.
10. "Love Love Love to release in Nepali new year". The Kathmandu Post. 9 October 2016. Archived from the original on 15 April 2020. Retrieved 15 April 2020.
11. "Swastima Khadka – "I don't find myself very pretty... only sometimes"". M&S Vmag. 13 May 2018. Archived from the original on 24 April 2020. Retrieved 15 April 2020.
12. Khadka, Anjan. "The Rising Nepal: Kutuma Kutu…becomes the most popular Nepali song". The Rising Nepal. Archived from the original on 15 April 2020. Retrieved 15 April 2020.
13. "Happy Birthday Swastima Khadka Basnet !". Moviemandu. 4 July 2018. Archived from the original on 24 October 2019. Retrieved 15 April 2020.
14. "2017 Nepali Music Bestseller: Kutu Ma Kutu". Nepali Sansar. 24 November 2018. Archived from the original on 30 September 2019. Retrieved 15 April 2020.
15. "'Kutu Ma Kutu' hits 100 million on YouTube". My City. 23 April 2019. Archived from the original on 15 April 2020. Retrieved 15 April 2020.
16. "Chhakka Panja 2". Nepali Times. 26 October 2017. Archived from the original on 15 April 2020. Retrieved 15 April 2020.
17. "Chhakka Panja 2 movie review: Comical take on a serious issue". Online Khabar. 8 October 2017. Archived from the original on 15 April 2020. Retrieved 15 April 2020.
18. "Chhakka Panja 2 reaps Dashain box office bonus". The Kathmandu Post. 3 October 2017. Archived from the original on 15 April 2020. Retrieved 15 April 2020.
19. "Chhakka Panja 2 To Become 2nd Highest Grosser Of All Time". Moviemandu. 19 October 2017. Archived from the original on 2 September 2019. Retrieved 15 April 2020.
20. "Fifth Nai Nabhannu La in August". The Kathmandu Post. 26 June 2018. Archived from the original on 15 April 2020. Retrieved 15 April 2020.
21. "Nai Nabhannu La 5 goes on floors". The Kathmandu Post. 28 March 2018. Archived from the original on 15 April 2020. Retrieved 15 April 2020.
22. Pyakurel, Diwakar (26 August 2018). "Nai Nabhannu La 5 movie review: A beautiful love story kills its own crux". Online Khabar. Archived from the original on 15 April 2020. Retrieved 15 April 2020.
23. "Nai Nabhannu La 5 Surpassed 2 Crore Mark at the Box Office". Moviemanu. 27 August 2018. Archived from the original on 15 April 2020. Retrieved 15 April 2020.
24. Dixit, Abhimanyu (27 October 2018). "Regression or redemption?". The Kathmandu Post. Archived from the original on 15 April 2020. Retrieved 15 April 2020.
25. Gautam, Gokarna (26 October 2018). "एकोहोरो हँसाउने धङधङी [फिल्म समीक्षा : जय भोले]". Nepal (in Nepali). Archived from the original on 15 April 2020. Retrieved 15 April 2020.
26. Kandel, Prakriti (26 February 2019). "Bulbul". Nepali Times. Archived from the original on 15 April 2020. Retrieved 15 April 2020.
27. Bhushan, Nyay (9 July 2019). "Oscars: Nepal Selects 'Bulbul' for International Feature Film Category". The Hollywood Reporter. Archived from the original on 15 April 2020. Retrieved 15 April 2020.
28. Mahat, Sunny (23 August 2019). "Two-hour yawn-fest". The Annapurna Express. Archived from the original on 15 April 2020. Retrieved 15 April 2020.
29. Risal, Rupak (16 August 2019). "'Hajar Juni Samma' Movie Review : An Average Affair". Moviemandu. Archived from the original on 27 August 2019. Retrieved 15 April 2020.
30. Dixit, Abhimanyu (16 November 2019). "'Ghamad Shere' has everything going for it, but still falls short". The Kathmandu Post. Archived from the original on 15 April 2020. Retrieved 15 April 2020.
31. "Watch Video : Swastima & Pradeep To Romance For Prem Geet 2". Moviemandu. 3 January 2017. Archived from the original on 15 April 2020. Retrieved 15 April 2020.
32. "Jai Bholey goes into production". The Kathmandu Post. 16 February 2018. Archived from the original on 15 April 2020. Retrieved 15 April 2020.
33. "Swastima Khadka featuring in 'Chapali Height 3'". My City. 11 September 2019. Archived from the original on 24 April 2020. Retrieved 15 April 2020.
34. "Nepal Bags Two Honor at SAARC Film Festival, Abinash's 'Tattini' And Bulbul's Swastima clinches The Title". Moviemandu. 8 July 2019. Archived from the original on 16 April 2020. Retrieved 16 April 2020.
35. "National Film Award Details | 2075". Lens Nepal. 12 July 2019. Archived from the original on 16 April 2020. Retrieved 16 April 2020.
36. "Oscars 2020: Nepal selects Binod Paudel's Bulbul as official entry for next year's Academy Awards- Entertainment News, Firstpost". Firstpost. 8 September 2019. Archived from the original on 16 April 2020. Retrieved 16 April 2020.

External links

• Swastima Khadka on IMDb