Bhinda Swari Shah: Grateful Tribute from Two Sons

Bhinda Swari Shah’s life is, indeed, a testament to resilience, pioneering spirit, and dedication to her nation. This is especially so in a backward country that remained basically biased and traditionally prejudiced against girls and women who used to be denied even the basic norms of education and social upliftment until recent decades.

When Bhinda Swari was born, the situation was quite bad in Nepal vis-à-vis the status of women. Though there was no purdah against women in Nepal in the specific sense of the term, they were denied the opportunity to read and write, not to talk of joining schools, for centuries almost prior to the political change of 1951.

Born on February 13, 1933, in Kurseong, India, Bhinda Swari’s early years were shaped by her family’s exile due to her father’s progressive educational pursuits. Even in India, despite no such glaring restrictions as were the case in Nepal, she had to break several glass ceilings imposed against her gender in her march for education and social change.

Her journey from a young girl in exile to becoming Nepal’s first female ambassador is both- inspiring and emblematic of breaking societal norms. At the same time, one should not forget that the story of her pursuits of education in India and the United States was full of constraints making her life a saga of struggles and sacrifices.

Childhood and Early Education

Bhinda Swari Malla (Shah) was born to Padma Sundar Malla and Jagat Laxmi Malla. Her father, Padma Sundar Malla, was an intellectual who pursued higher education in Japan and the United States, earning a postgraduate degree from the University of Mississippi in 1922. He became Nepal’s first electric engineer with a missionary zeal after financing his education through the funds he collected as a staff of the territorial army that allowed foreign nationals to join the organization in those days.  

However, Malla’s journey from school life was not a bed of roses, and faced several obstacles. His academic achievements were met with resistance by the Rana regime in Nepal, leading to the family’s exile in Kurseong, India. In Kurseong where the family settled before moving to Morang and finally to Kathmandu, Bhinda Swari attended St. Helen’s Convent School, where she laid the solid foundation for her future academic and professional accomplishments.

Despite making a yeoman’s service to the government of Nepal as an enlightened engineer as he had one British counterpart E. Kilburne, Malla was imprisoned once. He also lost the elections he fought from the Bhaktapur constituency in 1959 as an independent candidate. He was defeated by Jagannath Acharya who was given the ticket after great persuasion from top Congress leadership that smelt rats after Mangala Devi Singh’s initial resistance to withdraw her name with her husband Ganesh Man Singh who was also fighting from Kathmandu.

Academic Pursuits in the United States  

In 1951, while still in school, Bhinda Swari participated in an international essay competition titled “The World of Tomorrow.” Her insightful writing won her an award for a month-long trip to the United States, a journey that would significantly influence her worldview and aspirations.

She was among some select students who received the opportunity to visit Washington DC and other places in the country that greatly broadened her outlook further reinforcing her resolve to seek academic excellence in the most developed country of the world.

She even called on President Harry S. Truman, an opportunity she treasured and prided on her entire life. Seizing the opportunity of the US visit as a student, she applied to Barnard College, Columbia University, for admission to undergraduate courses and was accepted with a full scholarship.  

In May 1956, she graduated with a degree in Liberal Arts, becoming the first Nepali woman to earn a bachelor’s degree from an American institution of higher learning. Determined to further her education, she pursued a master’s degree in International Relations at the School of Advanced International Studies, Johns Hopkins University, completing it in 1958 possibly not realizing at that time that she was destined to serve as an iconic diplomat for more than three decades.

She had several close friends at Johns Hopkins and one gentleman to keep close contacts almost up to the end was Richard Murphy. Dick Murphy continued his correspondence with her through her disciple in the diplomatic service Madan Kumar Bhattarai. 

In between, she also studied library science in the US which came almost handy in her first job in Nepal as a librarian. Her close friend in terms of academic pursuits was Shesh Rajya Laxmi (alias Titi Maisap) also called Naipala Rajya Laxmi Shah, who was the first Nepali to complete a Masters in Political Science from Bristol University, United Kingdom, in 1958.

The other close friend of hers was Siddhi Lok Rajya Laxmi Shah as the two ladies used to create some sort of commotion among commuters in New Road as they used to ride horses, something most unexpected from females in those days.

Professional Life, Colleagues, and Diplomatic Career  

Upon returning to Nepal, Bhinda Swari faced the tough challenge of fully reintegrating into a society where her exposure, advanced education, and experience were rare, especially for women. She initially contributed to establishing the American Library in Kathmandu, which was jointly inaugurated by King Mahendra and Prime Minister BP Koirala.

She also served as a librarian at the Central Library which was then located at Chet Bhawan, Lazimpat. She was instrumental in getting King Mahendra and Prime Minister BP Koirala enrolled in the library as member number one and member number two respectively. Impressed by her capabilities, Koirala encouraged her to join the government service. The two families were familiar since their days in Kurseong through Dharanidhar Koirala, and later in Biratnagar as Padma Sundar Malla was involved in the Morang hydro-electric project.

Bhinda Swari was among nine new breeds of officers taken on a provisional basis in the first such attempt to reorganize the foreign service administration by Foreign Secretary Narapratap Shumshere Thapa. In this list of nine officers, there were two females, herself and Shanti Rana.

She succeeded in the Public Service Commission examination and joined the Ministry of Foreign Affairs as one of the seven permanent officers in 1959. Two initial recruits who failed to make the grade for permanent appointment included Shanti Rana and Bimalendu Malla leaving Bhinda Swari as the only female officer in the entire diplomatic service for decades.

A lone woman, Ambika Devi Pradhan, was in the assistant grade of the foreign service for a long time, a far cry from the status of present days when so many female officers have not only entered our foreign ministry with a bang but also occupied important positions in our diplomatic service.  

Other six officers who were enrolled in the reorganized foreign service along with Bhinda Swari at that time included the likes of Uddhav Deo Bhatt, Bishwa Pradhan, and Yadab Kanta Silwal, all of whom could become Foreign Secretary sooner or later. Bhatt became Chief of Protocol and Permanent Representative to the United Nations, New York, and after his superannuation was nominated by King Birendra as a member of the upper house of the parliament, National Assembly or Rashtriya Sabha.

Pradhan after completion of his responsibility as the Chief of Protocol, was appointed Ambassador to Egypt. He later became Ambassador to the United States. Silwal was Ambassador to Russia and later Nepal’s first Secretary-General of the SAARC. During his active diplomatic service, he was also appointed Member-Secretary of the Lumbini Development Trust then headed by Prince Gyanendra (later King from 2001 to 2008).

Three other officers who joined the service along with Bhinda Swari were Chief of Protocol and Ambassador to the then Soviet Union Bishweshwar Prasad Rimal, first Ambassador to Saudi Arabia Kedar Prasad Koirala, and Bhanu Prasad Thapalia. To go back to Bhinda Swari’s diplomatic career, her foreign assignment commenced with a posting at the Nepali Embassy in Washington, D.C., from 1961 to 1965.

She served under two stalwarts, Matrika Prasad Koirala and Major General Padma Bahadur Khatri. News flashed about Bhinda Swari’s initial diplomatic posting in the American capital. It seems Washington did not have any female ambassador accredited to the US in the early sixties. She became the acting head of the mission within two years of her arrival in Washington DC.

Her colorful and commanding presence clad in a beautiful Sari as the head of Nepali mission (as Matrika Prasad Koirala resigned and it took some months for his successor to join) in one stag party consisting of all male ambassadors and heads of missions caused a pleasant flutter among the press reporters who reported the event with due importance. 

Bhinda Swari earned admiration from all political stalwarts including King Mahendra and King Birendra who entrusted her with major responsibilities including her listing in major delegations and state visits abroad. She was also drafted for negotiations with India many times.

While her straightforward approach and penchant for using first names in addressing people might have ruffled the feathers of a section of top officials including influential palace authorities, she was admired by most prime ministers and foreign ministers among others.  

After her return from the United States subsequent to the completion of the tenure of the maiden diplomatic posting, King Mahendra made her Member-Secretary of Nepal National UNESCO Commission for Women which was headed by Queen Ratna Rajya Laxmi Devi Shah.

Following Bangladesh’s independence in 1971, King Birendra appointed her as the first head of mission in the newly rechristened Embassy of Nepal as it was upgraded to the level of Embassy from its erstwhile status as Consulate General of Nepal to East Pakistan following Bangladesh’s emergence as a sovereign country. 

As our top representative in the capital of the newly independent country, Dhaka, she adeptly managed diplomatic relations during a period of mind-boggling political upheavals, including the assassination of the country’s founding father Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujibur Rahman on August 15, 1975. One interesting aspect of her stay in the Bangladesh capital is that both Sheikh Hasina and Begum Khaleda Zia, pure housewives during those days, drew immense inspiration from Bhinda Swari as they related to our Embassy people later. Her tenure in Dhaka lasted until 1976.  

In 1988, Bhinda Swari broke another glass ceiling and achieved a historic milestone by becoming Nepal’s first-ever female ambassador and given the sensitive assignment of ambassadorship to India. Though she was the daughter of an extraordinary person like Padma Sundar Malla and daughter-in-law of former Secretary and senior member of the Raj Sabha, Raja Tarak Bahadur Shah, and sister-in-law of Foreign Minister Rishikesh Shaha, she was a self-made person.

She was also closely related to Hari Prasad Pradhan, Nepal’s first Chief Justice who held the position twice, both as Chief Justice of Pradhan Nyayalaya and Sarbochcha Adalat, both of which can conveniently be translated as Supreme Court in English. Her tenure in New Delhi coincided with challenging times, including an economic blockade imposed by India, which she navigated with diplomatic finesse. She served in this capacity until 1991.

Victim of Diplomatic Service  

A victim of political machinations and lack of rational decision-making in the post-1990 era, Bhinda Swari was recalled a few months before the completion of her full tenure as ambassador heaping all blame on her as if she was the single and only devil to negate Nepal-India relations.

While in Delhi, she was taken as one of the most popular ambassadors, she earned dislike and disapproval on the part of our authorities back home, a typical Nepali way of making assessments as subservience is probably an attribute that our political masters wish to reward people. Bhinda Swari returned to the headquarters as Additional Foreign Secretary, a number two position after Foreign Secretary, to which she was promoted while serving in New Delhi by the caretaker government headed by Prime Minister Krishna Prasad Bhattarai who was in her favour.  

There were two more additional secretaries in the foreign ministry, one of whom was then serving as ambassador in Moscow while the other had just returned from New York on completion of his tenure as Permanent Representative. The defeat of Bhattarai from his seat in Kathmandu constituency and the formation of the first elected government after the restoration of the multiparty system changed streams in respect of civil service, possibly thinking that bureaucrats were acolytes of the erstwhile regime.

The infamous administrative upheaval unleashed by the government forcing compulsory and selective retirements of over six thousand civil servants swept Bhinda Swari from the lofty administrative position and retired almost unknowingly. She took the obvious insult with poise and fortitude.  

As a charismatic and highly intelligent lady, she was also a victim of gender discrimination for a long time. Despite being the first female to be a section officer, under-secretary, joint secretary, and additional secretary in the foreign ministry, she was not given her rightful dues.

She was eager to become Chief of Protocol, a position she relished as her close friend and contemporary, and the first female in the Sri Lanka Foreign Service, Manel Abeysekera was allotted in 1974 and conducted the 1976 Non-aligned Summit that her country hosted with distinction.  

Since her husband Dr. Narayan Keshary Shah was posted in the Southeast Asian Regional Organization of the World Health Organization (SEARO), she naturally wished to go to New Delhi as Deputy Chief of Mission in New Delhi at least a decade earlier before she became Ambassador to India. The country lost the opportunity to make the talented and charismatic lady the first female Foreign Secretary of Nepal which could have raised our status in the comity of nations. In the process, we earned the ignoble distinction that we are not gender-sensitive.    

Personal Life and Legacy

In 1965, Bhinda Swari married Dr. Narayan Keshary Shah, a medical professional she met during her tenure in Washington, D.C. The couple had two sons: Anil Keshary Shah, a prominent figure in Nepal’s banking sector, and the late Ujjwal Keshary Shah.

Dr. Shah with his nickname, Bishnu, earned great respect within the country and in the eyes of the World Health Organization as he served in the organization for a long time. He was also a victim of domestic political machinations, if not sheer vendetta, possibly for being the spouse of Bhinda Swari as he was denied the opportunity to become Regional Director of the SEARO.  

Bhinda Swari’s commitment to her professional responsibilities often meant personal sacrifices, including extended periods away from her family. Despite societal challenges, such as prejudice against working women and inter-caste marriage, she remained steadfast in her pursuits, aiming to be a catalyst for change.

Throughout her life, Bhinda Swari was a vocal advocate for gender equality and education. She believed in using her platform and experiences to inspire and empower Nepali women, encouraging them to overcome societal barriers and pursue their aspirations.  

Though not in good health and unable to share her feelings openly, she must have felt satisfaction even at the sub-conscious level that Sewa Lamsal was finally appointed as the country’s first female Foreign Secretary in 2023. Her resilience and determination have left an indelible mark on Nepal’s diplomatic history and continue to inspire future generations. One important and possibly lasting input that Bhinda Swari contributed to the realm of our foreign service is her scrupulous system of filing and preparations of country profiles and factsheets.     

Final Words of Tribute

Bhinda Swari Shah passed away on January 2, 2025, just six weeks short of celebrating her completion of 92 years, leaving behind a legacy of pioneering achievements and a path for others to follow. One interesting coincidence was with Ambika Shrestha, a prominent hotelier and one of the foremost woman entrepreneurs of Nepal, who started a premier heritage hotel in Kathmandu.

They were extremely close friends. As if the providence wanted them to stay together even in the celestial world, Ambika Shrestha, only a day senior to Bhinda Swari as the former was born on February 12, 1933, died on July 18, 2024.

Bhinda Swari followed suit after a gap of only five and a half months. Bhinda Swari thus carved out a special niche in terms of education, civil service, women empowerment, and diplomacy. Her life exemplifies the impact of education, resilience, and breaking societal norms, serving as a beacon of inspiration for many, both males and females.

Shah is the eldest and only surviving son of Ambassador Bhinda Swari Shah and Ambassador Bhattarai is a former foreign secretary of Nepal who called him her godson.