KATHMANDU, AUGUST 21

Kul Kumari Thapa, a permanent resident of Rainadevi Chhahara Rural Municipality of Palpa, is battling multistatic squamous cell carcinoma of the lung. As per medical reports, she was initially diagnosed with oral cancer. Doctors have recommended her to undergo chemotherapy. However, it remains to be seen whether she would have to undergo surgery to get rid of the seemingly fatal illness.

Thapa, a mother of three, is the sole breadwinner of her family. She has been abandoned by her husband. Earlier, Thapa had been single-handedly operating a grocery shop in Tansen, the district headquarters of Palpa. Now that she is bed-ridden owing to the gravity of illness, her life is hanging in the balance. With nothing left to fend for herself, she is completely helpless and hapless, according to Rural Municipality officials.

Having been born and raised in Palpa, the 60-year-old looks disconsolate. Back then, she was enmeshed into the trap of domestic violence at the hands of her husband, a psychotic drunkard. Her elder son, a spoiled brat, compounded her ordeals, making her life a sort of hell. Her eldest daughter was married off to India about 12 years ago. The feelings of doom and gloom reflected in her face vividly portray a picture of her unresolved personal trauma. Maybe, there's an element of unassuaged sense of pain biting her from inside.

Nevertheless, she continues to persevere in the face of unfavorable odds. As the tip of the iceberg seems noticeable, the harsh reality of the underlying psychological conflicts goes unnoticed beneath the surface of the unjust society. Having suffered years of physical assaults and emotional abuse owing to familial conflicts, she could be seen morosely drinking black tea and listening to radio at a grocery store in Tansen. Currently, she is residing in a rented room with her youngest son in the capital, seeking helping hands to continue her medical treatment.