The magazine of the art-form of the photo-essay
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April 2015 back issue
by Sugato Mukherjee
Cold. Barren. Remote. As a child in Calcutta, this was all I knew of Ladakh.
A picture on my grandfather's wall showed nothing more than stark hills
and an ancient palace under a dark sky. Three decades later, it surprises
me with a raw, uncluttered beauty. The journey soon assumes multiple
patterns, intertwined with its forbidding landscapes and an austere flow
of life. Beyond its primal ruggedness, this antique terrain lets me into its
interiors, which are at once sublime and fragile. In these depths, I begins
my quest for my own slice of divine emptiness.
Perched atop steep inclines, ancient monasteries loom in the distance as silent bystanders.
Horse race is a prestigious sport among the nomadic Changpa tribesmen.
Monasteries in Ladakh date back centuries and remain the last bastions of Tibetan Buddhism.
The contours of the desert mountains often seem to be twisted out of proportion to make a colossal abstract painting.
Most of the region is too inhospitable for farming but grazing pastures often punctuate the barren desertscape.
A shepherd boy sets off with his herd in the morning.
Nestled amidst the bizarre moonscape, shreds of farmlands occasionally offer a green relief.
Life in this cold, barren land follows an austere, monastic rhythm.
The colourful festivals are melting pots for the indegenous tribes.
A Buddhist monk and a Tibetan witchdoctor perform a ritual to usher well-being into the valley.
A visit inside a Ladakh monastery is a plunge into its technicolour past with vibrant hangings and monks praying in
flowing crimson robes.
The Chaam dance that traditionally portrays the eternal strife between good and evil fearues in monastic festivals of
Ladakh.
The turquoise blue waters of Tso Moriri, one of the major high altitude lakes of Changthang Highlands in southeast
Ladakh.
The day ends in Rupshu valley, the high heartland of Ladakh.
