The Fierce One

Depending on who you ask, Prachanda means "the fierce one" or "awesome". It's also the name of Pushpa Kamal Dahal, erstwhile Prime Minister and former guerilla leader of the PLA that waged a ten-year insurgency in Nepal. 

Here, he salutes his Maoist army on their anniversary before letting his fighters know he is now PM and no longer their guerilla leader. If all this is alien to you, don't worry because it's equally confusing. 

The fierce one's detractors call him Pranchanda-cho, the last word meaning "thief". I learnt this from my reporters buddies and the morning I was heading to the Maoist cantonments for a story, my travel mate gave me some good advice, "Don't say Pranchanda-cho."

When I returned safe and sound from the barracks, they continued to rip me about it. Apparently the image of a Koidey (foreigner) striding up to the Maoist sentry and politely asking, "Is this the camp of Prachanda-cho?" was stuck in their heads.