Where do the Children Play? I have always been a big fan of Cat Stevens (Yusuf Islam). Though I can not articulate all the meanings of his songs and their impacts, I just find his songs very meaningful and connected with our societies.

Even the songs he wrote and sang in 70s are still relevant and meaningful. One of my favorite is ‘where do the children play?’ Well, that is a big question for metro cities like Kathmandu. And the question is going to be even bigger in coming decades. One fine evening I filmed kids in my neighborhood in Eastern Kathmandu and tried to sync them with the song. Please enjoy the video and let me know how did you find it.

Watch Where Do the Children Play by Cat Stevens

Please turn the captions [CC] on to see the lyrics.

When Did I first listen to Cat Stevens?

It was early 2000s. I was in grade 11 or 12. I don’t remember exactly. We had a song called ‘Father and  Son’ by Cat Stevens in the textbook of Major English. Listening to the audio of the song was part of the curriculum. My teacher Prem Sapkota brought cassette player one day and played ‘father and son’ by Cat Stevens. I fell in love with both the song and Cat Stevens.

It was probably the first time I intentionally listened to an English song. Otherwise Hindi movies songs and Nepali songs were those I grew up with.

Later I started listening all songs by Cat Stevens. His ‘Kathmandu’ is another favorite. I also have made a video of ‘Kathmandu’ by Cat Stevens. You can watch the video here.