Kathmandu Family, friends and well-wishers bid their final adieu to Dubby Bhagat, one of the pioneers of Nepal’s tourism industry, a journalist and food critic, on July 22 at Teku where Dubby’s last rites were held. Dubby, who had been ailing for a long time, breathed his last at the Emergency of Alka Hospital on July 20, and not at Patan Hospital as had been reported earlier. He was 73. Dubby’s last rites were performed as per the Sherpa tradition. Rinpoche Tsepri Lopan Tulku along with six monks performed the fire ceremony for the deceased. Dubby’s son Ri Dorjee Sherpa aka AD Sherpa lit the funeral pyre. AD, who was in Thailand at the time of his father’s death, rushed to Capital after “hearing the news on July 21”. “He was unconditional, kind and generous to both his granddaughters. He gave us unconditional love and the best possible life,” Dubby’s eldest granddaughter Duksangh Dolma Sherpa said. “He was a funny person with a great sense of humour. He was very passionate about movies and food,” she fondly recalled of her ‘Pala’. As per Duksangh, Dubby “had undergone several physical tests at Norvic Hospital earlier, and in the afternoon of July 20 we had collected his reports. Dr Pankaj Jalan had told us that he had urine infection.” They were on the way to Norvic Hospital to admit him to get his kidneys checked on the evening of July 20 but he suffered a heart attack on the way, as per Duksangh. “He was okay and breathing till we reached Jawalakhel roundabout from our home in Thasikhel. Suddenly he felt uncomfortable and we immediately took him to the nearby Alka Hospital, and he passed away in the Emergency sometime around 5:45-6:00 pm,” she informed. Born in Pune, India, Dubby made his maiden trip to Kathmandu in February 1975 to cover late king Birendra’s coronation. Kathmandu became his home ever since. Dubby, who had a long career in hotels and hospitality, is also regarded as a chronicler of Kathmandu’s hotels. Probably the best known food critic in Kathmandu, journalism was Dubby’s “other forte”. Pamela Chatterjee, Dubby’s aunt (father’s sister), recalled her nephew as “a person inclined towards art who had a flair for writing”. Among others “he wrote for Junior Statesman as a teenager”. He wrote three columns for The Himalayan Times. Anything Goes was his first column, followed by The Moveable Feast and DVDiscussion. He stopped writing the columns in 2013 but returned now and then with the Occasional Dubby. Dubby had many friends and many more admirers, and most called him their mentor. “I had known him since the late 70’s and he was a man with great knowledge. He had great knowledge about Nepal and its art and cultural heritage. He helped me a lot in my handicraft business, he was the editor of my book The Ranas of Nepal and he did it selflessly,” recalled Gautam SJB Rana, owner of The Babermahal Revisited, who had come to Teku to say his final goodbye to Dubby. “He was a mentor for Babermahal Revisited to place things in the tantric way. He was more of a guru. He was a knowledgeable man. There are many people who hold on to their knowledge but he gave it away happily, regardless. He was a selfless person. We will miss him,” Rana added. Another person who is indebted to Dubby is restaurateur Tasneem Sahani. “When I started my catering business from home 11 years ago, he ordered and I didn’t know who Dubby Bhagat was. After a week or so, I opened THT (his column used to come on Fridays) and I saw his article on me,” she said adding that when she opened her restaurant she insisted that only he write about it. “He had given up writing then, but came on the day of the opening and wrote about it. The best part of him being a food critic was that he paid for everything he would eat.” And a friend remembered him fondly. Nintey-two-year-old Elizabeth Hawley, best known chronicler of Himalayan expeditions, said, “I remember Dubby as quite a character. I knew him through Desmond Doig, whom I knew quite well. Dubby and Desmond knew each other from Calcutta (now, Kolkata). He was much more active than I realised. He was a very amusing man. Of course, he was quite smart and he was quite funny. He was just different. He wrote some interesting columns related to tourism.” Dubby is survived by his son AD, and granddaughters Duksangh and Heyshe. The end of an era Kathmandu Today I attended the funeral of Dubby Bhagat or Dubby as he liked to be called. Dubby was not my friend nor was he family — but he was a great friend of The Himalayan Times (THT). With friends and family gathered around to bid goodbye to Dubby, the grey skies and constant drizzle didn’t seem to matter. Everyone there had turned up to say goodbye to a man who truly loved and promoted Nepal in his writings. The polite conversations were about how Dubby who was larger than life, touched their lives. This was not just a farewell but a fitting celebration of his achievements and the legacy he leaves behind. Dubby played an influential role at the very start of THT and was a huge support always. Dubby was among the pioneers of the tourism industry here in Nepal and had fascinating stories and insights on how things went down in the early days. Dubby was always impeccably dressed and I will always remember him in his navy blazer, red muffler and smoking pipe (later replaced later by a wooden cigarette painted with a realistic red tip after he quit smoking for health reasons). After I joined THT and when I handled the Features department, I got to interact a lot more with him. He was doing two columns for us — The Moveable Feast and Dubby’s DVDiscussion. The food column was loved by all and in his own delectable style Dubby wooed a whole generation into eating out. I would go to the extent of saying he made possible the evolution of restaurants in the city, with global cuisine and restaurants flourishing here in Kathmandu. Years later when we did our restaurant guide, Dubby in the foreword wrote, “My aim is to encourage eating out as is the aim of THT. May all of us be unstoppable in creating a better dish, the superlative meal, and the perfect company as we exclaim about tastes, flavours and textures.” But Dubby was not just a columnist at THT. He dropped by and shared his views, ideas and rich experiences with a young team of writers and editors and people half his age without ever intruding or being condescending. Dubby inspired us. Over many cups of coffee we discussed people, places and things in Nepal that should be highlighted and written about. Many of these ideas went to print and made THT a preferred read. My last meeting with Dubby, a couple of years ago, was at Chez Caroline at Babermahal Revisited, where he invited me to lunch. As usual we talked shop and he asked about the Food Spy column we had started. He told me how he could never be a real food spy because he could not be critical. He loved food far too much and always looked for the best things to celebrate. Even after that heavy lunch, he insisted we also have the chocolate dessert which according to him was, “Simply divine! It’s worth dying for.” Later due to health reasons Dubby did not get out as much as he would have liked to, but at regular intervals he would call, “to just check on how things are going”. Though his speech was affected and it was difficult to understand him at times, his humour was contagious. There were a lot of things that were contagious about him. We always wanted to write like him, “with a little more passion and emotional involvement”. From him we learnt that writing about and celebrating the beautiful little things in life can be the biggest reward in itself. Looking back now, I see that I learnt a lot from him. He was that father figure and a friend. He was that guide, that support you knew you could count on. Like I said, Dubby was neither my friend nor was he family. He was my guru, my mentor. Goodbye Dubby! You lived a life many of us only dream about and you leave behind a void that will not be easy to fill. Simply Amazing: Dubby as I Knew Him Dubby was an enigma as I first read his pieces in the weekly JS (Junior Statesman), a cult magazine of yesteryears, during my school days in India. My dream to meet him materialised in 1979 when I met him in Kathmandu. Dubby was then working at World Travels. He was also producing Nepal Review, a monthly magazine with Ashu Kasliwal. I joined the team and soon became the Editor, Reporter, Secretary, all rolled in one. Sadly, the magazine could not continue. I had no regrets as the experience and learning was unmatched. Perhaps it was kismet, or simply destiny. Dubby took me under his wings and became a friend, philosopher and guide, but above all my mentor. He nurtured in me the passion to write, to relive legends and experience the myth and magic of Nepal. We shared a common interest in books, food and movies and above all, loads of humour and laughter. His gifts were hilarious — each more outrageous than the first. From books like Do Ants have Arseholes?, to a wind-up dick that walked across the table, to a long rectangular silver box with the legend ‘For the Busy Male Executive’ written outside and a long silver coloured arm with a handle and just three words: ‘Gentleman’s Ball Scratcher’ on the inside. The box has pride of place on my office table, simply because no one can resist not opening it, and then bursting out into laughter. On one occasion, he gifted me a roll of toilet paper with jokes printed on them. The box simply said, ‘Crap Humour’. Where he bought these gifts will always remain a mystery. Dubby’s writing skills were legendary. From music reviews in London for JS, under a column called Dubby’s Discussion, he rubbed shoulders with popstars and fashion icons. He was Bollywood’s highest paid gossip columnist, where he knew every big star and commanded tremendous respect. Legend has it that when Rauf Ahmed sought out Dubby in Kathmandu after his ‘retirement’ from Bollywood, he invited him to Mumbai to help out with the launch of a film magazine called MOVIE. Dubby flew into Bombay, made a few calls, asked for three secretaries to come in to take dictation. With a cigarette in hand, (he was a chain smoker), feet up on the desk, he dictated three full issues, cover to cover, without a break. He flew back to Kathmandu the next day. That was Dubby. Dubby was the stuff legends were made up of. He was a phenomenon. His memory was razor sharp. Matched with a sharp wit. He could remember names of books and movies and people. If you walked the streets of Kathmandu with him, he would enthrall you with stories and the history of each temple. Two books stand testimony. My favourites co-authored with Desmond Doig called My Kind of Kathmandu and In the Kingdom of the Gods. Both have been written with divine passion. All this came about because of his love for Nepal. What didn’t he do to promote Nepal? Everything possible. He conceived and handled the first son et lumière in Bhaktapur’s Nyatapola Square during a PATA ceremony in the 80’s. It was sensational. Nepal came alive that evening under the shadow of a master magician storyteller. He helped Desmond design the Nepal pavilion at IGA in Germany. The pavilion replete with pagodas and a garden drew thousands of visitors who had never seen Nepal. Sadly, he was never recognised for all his contributions. My association with Dubby goes back 37 years. After Nepal Review folded up, together with Kalyan Singh, we started an ad agency called Desla — The Communicators, in memory of Desmond. My interest, passion and curiosity in advertising was born. I have yet to meet someone who could come up with an ad campaign at the drop of a hat. How did his mind work was something that fascinated and intrigued me. If you came up with a problem, he would come up with the solution. Instantaneously. He was simply amazing. Thanks to Dubby who pushed me into talking to Mike Khanna, the then head of India’s largest ad agency Hindustan Thomson Associates, now JWT, I was schooled in the world of advertising. It has been a profession that has lasted a lifetime. Dubby was one of those rare individuals who made friends very easily. From sheikhs in London who owned six Rolls Royces, to movie stars, top notch executives, all of them would do anything for him. All because he went out of his way to help them. From him I learnt the art of networking. Of making friends easily. The secret was simple — just go up and talk. Through him I learnt the power of the written word. His one letter was guaranteed to bring in a positive response and result. He was already a Direct Marketing Guru. It was a continuous learning process for a young college kid, still wet behind the ears. It was Dubby who introduced and pushed me into the world of newspapers. Dubby was ultimately responsible for the birth of an English daily called The Himalayan Times, your paper which survived turbulent times and is now your favourite read. A Brand was born. He was the big Daddy and a staunch supporter of the paper. He was a prolific contributor besides penning two widely read columns. Dubby had not been keeping well and shunned meeting people. Meeting Dubby was a ritual whenever we came to Nepal. I was truly thankful that I called him to meet in May when I was in Kathmandu. He refused at first. Half an hour later he asked us to come over to his house. That was our last meeting. It was a meeting I felt really bad, because Dubby had deteriorated and was the reason he did not want to meet anyone. He made an exception for me. For that I will always be grateful. I was leaving on an overseas business assignment and promised to meet him in the last week of July. Alas, it was not meant to be. What tribute can I pay him? Simp-ly this, “THANK YOU for everything Dubby. You were a true mentor.” “Travel gently with your head amongst the stars, and may all the Gods and Goddesses of Nepal guide you on your onward journey.” You will be sorely missed.

— Ravin Lama, MD, IMN

Dear Dubby, Now that you have left us… ... who should I turn to when I need help writing an article or choosing some words for a brochure? … who should I turn to to know which books to read from the present best seller lists? … who should I turn to to know which movies to see next week from the long lists of recommendations? Your lists of choices will remain vivid in my memory forever, not forgetting the food tasting sessions where your ‘Burra Kebab’ won the competition all the time, and the endless marketing sessions where Desmond and you made us repeat the action 50 times before we got it right. Your love for Nepal, its mountains and its culture and people, was tremendous and we shall always remember and cherish the times spent with you. Rest in peace Dubby. We will miss you.

Daman Pradhan Managing Director Yeti Holidays Pvt Ltd

Dubby’s passing mourned on fb Last person of Desmond Doig legacy, Dubby Bhagat is no more with us. He was a writer, journalist, designer, hotel consultant who made Nepal his home forever after coming to Kathmandu with Desmond to cover the coronation of king Birendra.

— Sarad Pradhan, Media Consultant at Nepal Tourism Board

Media icon Dubby Bhagat passed on at the age of 73. Entrepreneur and an expert in reinventing hotels. He was also an expert in promoting musicians and gave breaks to Usha Uthup, Ajit Singh, Biddu Appaya, The Diamonds and organised Rock n roll shows at The Everest Hotel for Mike Khadka and the Kathmandu kats.

— Mukunda K Khadka, Founder, Director at Classic FM 101.2 MHz