On some Saturdays in a Kathmandu bar that shall remain unnamed, a tall, glamorous woman sings heart-stopping jazz like she's been doing it all her life. She hasn't. After a 25-year sabbatical, Vidhea Shrestha returned to her lifelong passion in 2000, when she sang in a local music festival on the prodding of Kathmandu jazzman Chris Masand. Vidhea says she got involved because "this is such a unique musical genre, I felt it could contribute to Kathmandu's culture."

"Pop rock already has a large following here," she explains. "Jazz is new. It's more akin to eastern classical music, with it's improvisational quality." Improvisation is Vidhea's forte. While performing, she bursts into frenetic dance and often throws Nepali words in.

At a time most female singers aspire to Mariah Carey-style diva-hood, Vidhea is refreshing for taking on a musical form that may not have instant appeal. But then, jazz is in her blood, as she grew up under the influence of a grandfather who loved the old school performers. Vidhea herself will listen to any period, any composer or singer, but she does have her favourites and most days wakes up to John Coltrane's tenor sax and going on to Miles Davis' trumpet. As for who her vocal influences are, that question is easier. And if you've heard her perform, it is also not surprising: "Two women-though I sing nothing like them," she laughs modestly. She's talking about the late, great Billie Holliday, and contemporary vocalist Cassandra Wilson. Vidhea's best rendition is always of Strange Fruit, the Lady Day classic that Cassandra Wilson brought back to life a decade ago.

While she brings a Western musical tradition to Kathmandu through her sizzling performances, Vidhea is also committed to introducing Nepali culture to westerners through her work at Sojourn Nepal, an experiential program designed to immerse young Western students in Nepali life. Students live with a Nepali family, take language classes, and delve into the possibilities Kathmandu holds through apprenticeships or volunteer work. There couldn't be a more suitable person to be someone's first introduction to Nepal. Vidhea has travelled extensively not only in Nepal and Tibet, but also Europe and the United States, which makes it easy for her to relate to the perspectives of her western students. And it shows-a number of Sojourn students decide to stay on longer, come back, or devote themselves to research in Nepal.

Vidhea calls herself an "incorrigible optimist" who wants to get the most out of life-she's also a bookworm, intrepid trekker, art and photography enthusiast, and has, to top it all, an encyclopaedic knowledge of the culture, architecture and religion of the region. Her optimism doesn't hurt either. Although the Sojourn Nepal program was suspended last year due to the royal massacre and the increasingly devastating Maoist attacks, Vidhea is still helping individual students come to Nepal. "Now more than ever cross-cultural and experiential learning is essential," she says. And she's still singing, bringing east and west a little bit closer.