Butwal FM

Butwal sits on the Mahendra Highway in Nepal's Terai, and its radio sounds like the town feels: hot, loud, and permanently in motion. The playlist runs on Nepali pop and lok dohori, with Hindi film songs wedged in because that's what people here actually hum. You'll hear Narayan Gopal on a slow morning and a Bartika Eam Rai track ten minutes later. Nobody blinks. Plenty of radio in Nepal has gone sleek and algorithmic. Not this one. Hosts talk over intros, take calls, read out local notices about road work and exam results. It's messy, and that's why people keep the dial here instead of switch…