Drunken Boat / Fortunate Traveller Press has announced the publication of Bhutan, a multi-genre collaboration by Sudeep Sen and Ravi Shankar that defies conventional travel writing. The book combines Sen's chiselled poetry and evocative photography with Shankar's sharp, exploratory prose to present a complex portrait of the Himalayan kingdom often called the world's last Shangri-La.
Nestled in the eastern Himalayas, Bhutan has cultivated an image as the happiest country on Earth, measuring prosperity through Gross National Happiness rather than GDP. Shankar approaches this claim with wit, analytical rigour, and genuine wonder, tracing the country's modernizing monarchy, Buddhist heritage, and the complicated textures beneath the glossy official narrative. His prose moves with curiosity and candour, absorbing landscapes and sacred sites without surrendering critical intelligence.
Sen's poetry and photography provide a stunning counterpoint. Spare, musical, and visually arresting, his couplets operate as short flashes of organic form—obsessed with colour, texture, and the sacred. His photographs of Bhutan's prayer flags, monasteries, and mountain light carry the same lyric precision as his verse, making the book a genuinely integrated work of art.
Together, the two writers create a two-voiced, multi-modal portrait of a country at the crossroads of tradition and transformation. Bhutan is not a travel book in any conventional sense; it is a literary reckoning with place, beauty, and the stories nations tell about themselves.
Praise for the book comes from notable figures. Actress Shabana Azmi describes it as 'a unique and personal multi-genre book' that brings alive aspects of the country through the artists' signature styles. Dasho Kinley Dorji calls it 'an elegant treasure trove' capturing what is special about Bhutan. Writer Diane Mehta notes the 'deceptively pretty book has a two-way narrative that tracks the forward motion of experience on the road to transcendence,' while Amit Majmudar highlights the 'sheen of eudemonic delight and heightened astonished awareness' that adheres to the work.
The book is available on Amazon at https://tinyurl.com/5f3f4aay.
Bhutan is published by Drunken Boat / Fortunate Traveller Press and priced at $29.95 in trade paperback format. The book spans multiple genres including literary travel, poetry, and photography.
