Kathmandu, Sept. 18 -- Throughout her time as a Deputy Inspector General of Nepal Police, Bimala Thapa was referred to as "Sir" by her subordinates. She tried several times, during her initial days in the role, to explain to officers that she would prefer to be referred to as "madam"- not sir. But she eventually gave up and stopped correcting people.

"It seemed futile to discuss the issue because even those who should have understood why it matters treated it lightly," says Thapa, whose superiors would also acknowledge her as sir. "Many probably don't see why this is demeaning, but it used to feel like they thought that those in power were always supposed to be men."

It's no surprise that Nepali society still harbours stereotypes when i...