Nepal, Aug. 13 -- August is a month of bittersweet memories across much of South Asia. In Pakistan, it is a time of remembrance and rejoicing, tempered by the pangs of a nation's birth. In India, it's a season to mark both liberation and loss. Across Bangladesh, it's a time to reflect on the coup d'etat of 1975 and a revolution gone wrong.

On 16 August 1946, the All-India Muslim League had called for a 'Direct Action' to demand a separate homeland for Muslims after the British exit from India. Within a year, Quaid-e-Azam Muhammad Ali Jinnah took over as the first governor-general of what he called the 'mutilated, truncated, moth-eaten Pakistan' on 14 August 1947. He remained in office until his death a year later.

For the younger twin t...