Cities have a persona of their own, they have character, visual traits, distinct taste buds and utility.

They get embroiled in symbolism derived from primary activities or major significance it holds. An internal migrant stated that Birgunj is a city of dreamers at best, where some make it some don't. It is bustling and considered one of the prominent cities in Nepal.

Located135km south of Kathmandu, it acts as the doorway to the world for trade and tourism.

Decades ago while road links and transportation facilities were still taking shape in Nepal, people from north India, west and east Nepal travelled via Indian railways to reach the Sugauli station. Another 30 km of road travel would bring them to Birgunj, a major connecting point to Kathmandu and other major areas of Nepal. The route became so prominent that the Indian state constructed the Raxaul Junction adjacent to the Birgunj border. On our side, we had the Raxaul-Amlekhganj railway link as early as 1927. This, perhaps, later evolved to establish Birgunj as the hub of major economic activities, earning it the moniker industrial and commercial capital of Nepal.

However, the strength of the socio-cultural identity of Birgunj is less explored and has always been overshadowed by its commercial identity. In this article, I shall try to chronicle the socio-cultural aspect of this city and how it has fared with its recent development.

In its existence as a city for more than a century, it has majority of the Bhojpuri speaking population with a decent amount of Nepali, Maithili, Nepal Bhasa, Bajjika, Bangla, Punjabi, Marwari and Hindi speakers as well. It is a pioneer in literary activities and education.

To drop a history trivia, it is home to Nepal's first university, Nepal Rashtriya Vidyapeeth. Interesting to note that it had Ganesh Man Singh as its chancellor and Mahkavi Laxmi Prasad Devkota as vice-chancellor.

Furthermore, Thakur Ram Multiple Campus in Adarshnagar is a six- decade-old college and alma mater of many who's who.

This city has produced seminal literature, primarily in Bhojpuri. Bhojpuri literature is rich in its regional philosophical overview, depiction of local lifestyle and has remained contemporary and aesthetically affluent. Early writings were dominated by themes of modernisation of farming, feudalism, internal migration and identity crisis of villages. Litterateur Pandit Deep Narayan Mishra's work is considered a milestone. He wrote in Kabir like doha style often in rhyme scheme. Recent works have dealt with society's struggle to overcome socio-political agonies like caste, bonded labour and regional identity. Gopal Ask, Uma Shankar Dwiwedi, Dinesh Gupta, Mukund Acharya, Purshottam Sharma and Anita Shah are the major torch bearers of this. However, critics and readers combined point out the missing continuity in both depth and amount of Bhopuri literature produced over time. Further, they add that Janakpur has taken up Maithili identity and has smoothly owned Maithili poet Vidyapati. The Awadhs in north-eastern Uttar Pradesh in India have owned up poet Tulsidas.

However, the hot land of Bhojpuri hasn't been able to own up its pioneers like Bhikari Thakur and Mahendra Mishra.

Birgunj is flooded with new age cafes and restaurants. From a discotheque to a tea shop, it encompasses the complete spectrum. Social media has brought traction to selfie points at these food joints with photogenic interiors.

Mouth-watering chaats, bhuja-pakora, dahi-chiura, sattu, lassi, kachori-tarkari-jilebican be found here.

The tea shops are equally vibrant places for socio-political discussions and hangout spots for college goers. But elderlies caution about the growing number of bhattis, or local pubs.

A resident startled me when I asked about the unique food Birgunj. He said, 'Do you find any Bhojpuria Thali like Mithila Thali in Janakpur and Thakali in Kathmandu?' There hasn't been much effort in commercialising Bhojpuria Thali. The rapid growth of the culinary habit in Birgunj is yet to properly capture the cultural essence of this region.

Traditionally, Bhojpuri paintings find their root in the local customs. There are the Kohbar and Pidhiya paintings, the former being done on the eastern wall of a room for the newly-weds, which has religious overtones, and the latter on the wooden plank meant for sitting. The outer walls of bamboo huts and grain stores (bedhi) are also decorated with drawings of flowers, cattle and gods.

However, unlike Mithila art, these traditional art forms are absent in the modern markets. Artists opine that Bhojpuri art is at a stage where Mithila art was probably five-six decades ago.

Further, there is a lack of synchrony in the blaring horns, whistles and DJs. There is no single sound to identify with the city. But there was a time when the railway whistle and later the sugar mill horn resonated with the lives of the people. Music is vibrant and has given a market to Indian Bhojpuri films and music. A large music space, besides a few good attempts, awaits virtuous artists in building a different image of Nepali Bhojpuri music.

This city exudes a distinct cultural identity as the urban landscape offers rich cultural reflections even though the metropolitan character of this city takes prominence. However, the residents have shown an inclination to something different. People are in search of diverse cuisines and are eager to introduce something indigenous to their guests. People have started to step out for music and food. The success story of the recent night market is an evidence towards this end. Unlike the 90s, parents are keen to engage their offspring in music, literature and art so that they stand out from the crowd. To cater to these, there is a presence of history, literature, food and art already. Birgunj's approach to modernity and development could include cultural aspects to give it a distinctive character.

Jha is a lawyer and researcher from Birgunj

A version of this article appears in the print on September 20, 2023, of The Himalayan Times.