Yakthung people
Born 1981, Dharan, Nepal
Lives and works in London, United Kingdom, and Kathmandu, Nepal

Through his practice, Subash Thebe Limbu explores the relationship between art and social change, which manifests through sound, animation, music, performance and painting. In recent years, his enduring interests in science fiction, speculative narrative, indigeneity and climate change have been the focus of an ongoing body of work titled Ningwasum, which culminates in a film of layered styles and footage. Developed from extensive research and several preparatory works, the film places his own Limbu community from eastern Nepal in a futuristic space travel scenario. It imagines an indigenous astronaut and time traveller from the future, where her indigenous nation coexists with other nations and allies in the future and has created its own advanced technology. Filmed mostly in the Himalayas — including the Wasanglung region believed to be the shamanic home of his Yakthung people — it follows two time travellers, played by Subin Limbu and Shanta Nepali, and weaves together storytelling, animation, indigenous language, soundscapes and electronic music.