To the point

Arniko in the new age

"Chinese are aware of the white dagoba, but they're unaware of its origins and who built it," says Anish Kumar Kuikel, 24, who plays the role of Arniko in the game, and who is studying for a master's degree in international education of the Chinese language at Beijing Language and Culture University.

"Dagoba culture week was a great opportunity to promote Nepalese culture," he says. "Chinese people show great respect for Buddhism, our religion. When I explain that Nepal is where Buddhism originated, the birthplace of Gautama Buddha, they show huge interest in traveling to Nepal to know more about our culture."

Bidur K.C., 23, a Nepalese studying Chinese philosophy at Beijing Normal University, and who plays the Malla King in Finding Arniko, says: "I was a tad nervous the day the culture week opened, and curious about how tourists would react when they came across my character, dressed in Nepalese traditional clothes and speaking Chinese to them.

"In the event, people were very excited to see me and asked a lot about culture and traditions such as marriage in Nepal. My Chinese is not that good, but I did my best to present my homeland to them and showed them what Nepal is really like."

Shrestha Shrijana, 26, also studying for a master's degree of international education of the Chinese language at Beijing International Studies University, says she views the dagoba as the "largest symbol of civil and cultural communications between the two countries". Wearing Nepalese dress at the gate of dagoba, presenting her country's culture to people filled her with pride, she says.

The Nepalese actors and actresses expressed their interest and pride in building a new bridge between the two countries and their cultures.

One of the actors, Shrestha, said she arrived in China a year ago and as someone who appreciates different cultures, she hopes that eventually she will don traditional Chinese dress.