“It was a very lonely experience,” Mahananda said.
Mr Pandit, Nepal’s ambassador to Israel, told the BBC he was in regular contact with the family and visited the village.
Mahananda painted a slightly different picture, saying that at the beginning of the war the family did receive frequent visits from officials, but as it dragged on, they were increasingly left alone.
“Since the conclusion of the new ceasefire agreement, no one has come to us or communicated with us,” he said.
“Everything we know comes from the news.”
A spokesman for Israel’s presidential office, Isaac Herzog, who has been working with the families of the hostages for the past 15 months, said it treats all hostages equally, both Israeli and foreign, and is working diligently to free them all. .
For some families, news of the ceasefire offers hope that their 15-month ordeal is coming to an end and they will be able to see their loved ones again in a matter of weeks.
For others like Joshi, any hope must be tempered.
The longer they have to wait, the more likely it is that the ceasefire agreement could collapse.
At home in Bispura Mahendranagar on Thursday, Bipin’s sister Puspa held a photograph of her brother as she spoke.
Tears filled her eyes as she spoke of his homecoming. She was sure he would.
“And when I see him again, I’m going to hug him,” she said. – And cry.
