With the success of his acting partner Hari Bansha Acharya’s memoir Cheena Harayeko Manchhe, Madan Krishna Shrestha was persistently nagged by his fans. “In the last few years, everyone I have met has asked the same question—when I will write a book, refering to Acharya’s autobiography,” Shrestha had said during the launch of Acharya’s novel Haribahadur last month. Now, publisher FinePrint has confirmed, on Wednesday, that Shrestha’s autobiography, titled MaHa ko Ma, will finally come out; the book is slated to hit the stands in September. 

Shrestha has, in his long-spanning career of more than half a century, worked as an actor, director and writer, and along with his acting partner Acharya, he has also engaged in social activism. 

Speaking at the event at Moksh in Jhamsikhel, Shrestha said that the upcoming book traces his life from childhood to his partnership with Acharya and his personal reflections. “At first, I was not sure about writing a book because I have led a very common life. Most of the autobiographies are written by great people about great deeds they have done over their lifetime. But since I have led a simple life, I didn’t have much to write about,” Shrestha said, adding, “However, my family and friends always pushed me to write about my journey so far. So I later decided to give it a shot.” Shrestha went on, “Even though I started to write this book almost six years back, I had to stop in between after I was diagnosed with Parkinson’s disease. It took quite a while to finish this book, but it’s finally coming out.”

Shrestha’s acting partner Acharya, who was also present at the event, congratulated Shrestha and said, “Even though this is not the announcement of my book, I feel very nervous and excited as if it were my own book. I have worked with Madan dai for a long time now and have had the opportunity to know him up close. He is a very profound person with immense dedication and passion for his work. His hard work and love towards his craft is an inspiration for everyone. I am very delighted that people will be able to know more about him through this book and learn from him.” He added, “People have already read about the ‘Ha’ of MaHa through Cheena Harayeko Manchhe, now it’s time to know about the ‘Ma’.” 

Maha ko Ma will release on September 5.