Reynoldsburg teen acts alongside Hollywood, Kathmandu movie stars in English-Nepali drama

When she’s not in class at Reynoldsburg High School Summit Campus, Aditi Pyakurel can be found shooting photos around town with her retro film camera, attending 4-H club meetings, or starring in films alongside actors from Hollywood and Kathmandu.

The precocious 16-year-old recently finished shooting for “The World’s Happiest Man,” a film about a Bhutanese Nepali family in Akron. Pyakurel stars alongside Bruce Dern — who was Oscar-nominated for 2013’s “Nebraska” — as well as Dayahang Rai and Hari Bansha Acharya, big names from Nepal’s burgeoning film industry.

In the Nepali-English bilingual film (with subtitles), which is expected to be released late this year, Pyakurel plays the youngest of a three-generation family whose members sometimes struggle to relate to one another. Pyakurel's character, Gungun, has a grandfather who grew up in Bhutan before being expelled by the government. Gungun's father came of age in a refugee camp in Nepal and arrived in the U.S. as an adult. Meanwhile, Gungun was born in the U.S., and she is steeped in American culture.

“(Gungun) is an American, and she’s kind of coming to terms with … two identities and where they place her in the world,” Pyakurel explained on a recent afternoon after school, sitting in her family’s living room in a quiet Reynoldsburg neighborhood.

Pyakurel’s own family history echoes her character’s: She was born in a refugee camp in Nepal, but moved to the U.S. with her family as a toddler. She, too, lives in a three-generation household.

But Pyakurel said her character’s rebellious personality differs significantly from her own, and she’s not sure they would be friends in real life.

“She would seem like this really cool person … that I could not build up the courage to talk to,” Pyakurel said with a laugh.

'The World’s Happiest Man' tells a story of Bhutanese Nepali Americans

Binod Paudel, who wrote and directed the film, described the “The World’s Happiest Man” as “surreal,” and did not want to reveal too much about the plot in an interview with The Dispatch. He said the film is in post-production now, and he hopes to distribute it through film festivals and in theaters around the U.S., Europe and Nepal.

“It tells the story of this (Bhutanese Nepali) community, but at the same time, it’s very universal — it’s a relatable immigrant story,” Paudel said in Nepali.

Bhutanese Nepalis began resettling in the U.S. in 2007 under the U.S. Refugee Admissions Program, after being evicted by the Bhutanese monarchy and spending decades in camps in Nepal. Today, Greater Columbus is home to around 30,000 Bhutanese Nepali Americans — the largest such community in the U.S., according to the local nonprofit Bhutanese Community of Central Ohio.

Pyakurel’s father Bhuwan, who is a member of the Reynoldsburg City Council, has a two-minute cameo in the film where he gives voice to the community’s history of persecution.

Bhuwan hopes the film will provide viewers an alternative perspective to the official narrative of Bhutan as a kingdom that prioritizes “gross national happiness” and environmental values.

“I think the perspective that Bhutan has been publicizing will begin to crack, (as) people start looking at the other side,” he told The Dispatch.

Paudel chose to film in Akron, which like Greater Columbus also has a sizable Bhutanese Nepali community, in part because of its Rust Belt aesthetic.

“The very first time I landed in Akron-Canton Airport, it was winter — snowy. I saw some dilapidated buildings. … At the same time, among the Bhutanese Nepali community, life is happening all around the place. … It was like they were giving life back to the place,” said Paudel, who has directed several Nepali-language films.

Bruce Dern, Dayahang Rai and Hari Bansha Acharya ‘amazing’ to work with

Pyakurel said she began making films with friends in elementary school using a camcorder, and continued to pursue acting through classes at Broadway2LA, an acting studio in Columbus.

Before starring in the new film, she had already garnered a small following through her YouTube channel, where she reviews books by Bhutanese authors.

“The World’s Happiest Man” was her feature-length debut.

To prepare to play her character, Pyakurel said she spent weeks journaling from Gungun’s perspective and listening to a playlist of songs she thought Gungun would like.

“As for the filming process, it's one of the coolest things I've ever experienced in my life. … Everybody's so passionate about what they're doing on set,” she said.

She said at the beginning, she was unaware of her co-stars’ stature in Hollywood and Kathmandu.

“If I had known like, how big (Dern, Rai or Acharya) were, I wouldn’t have been able to keep my nerves down. … Being blissfully unaware was really good,” she said.

Dern, who plays a funeral home director, was ‘amazing’ to work with, she said.

“He's so good at what he does — they’ll be like, ‘Action!’ and he'll immediately be in character. … I’m still reeling in that experience,” Pyakurel said.

The experience helped cement her interest in pursuing film studies — she said she hopes to one day attend New York University’s Tisch School of the Arts.

“First, I’ve got to finish high school,” she said.

Peter Gill covers immigration, New American communities and religion for the Dispatch in partnership with Report for America. You can support work like his with a tax-deductible donation to Report for America at:bit.ly/3fNsGaZ.

pgill@dispatch.com

@pitaarji

This article originally appeared on The Columbus Dispatch: Reynoldsburg teen acts alongside Hollywood, Kathmandu movie stars