KATMANDU: A Nepalese presenter will attempt to set the world record for the longest television talk show this week by staying on air for 60 hours, organizers said yesterday. Rabi Lamichhane, a 36-year-old based in the US, has returned to Katmandu to stage a program, and try to capture the Guinness world record.

“Through the talk show I want to spread the word about Nepal and promote tourism,” Lamichhane, a former journalist who is now a manager at a Subway fast-food sandwich outlet in Baltimore, told AFP. “I am inviting politicians, sportspersons, film actors and social workers.” According to Guinness World Records rules, Lamichhane will be allowed five minutes every hour for a break. “I will use whatever time I accumulate for lunch and dinner breaks,” he said, adding that he might even take a nap if the situation allows.

The producers say they have prepared back-up electricity supplies to guard against Nepal’s frequent power cuts, which can hit for up to 14 hours a day.

The current record for the world’s longest talk show, according to Guinness, is held by Pavlo Kuzheyev and Tetiana Danylenko for a 52-hour broadcast to celebrate the twentieth anniversary of Ukraine’s independence in 2011.