Drunken Boat / Fortunate Traveller Press has announced the release of Bhutan, a multi-genre collaboration between poet-photographer Sudeep Sen and prose writer Ravi Shankar. The book, available on Amazon, combines poetry, photography, and travel writing to offer a critical yet reverent look at the Himalayan kingdom often idealized as the world's last Shangri-La.
Sen and Shankar, both of South Asian origin, bring distinct perspectives to the project. Shankar's prose explores Bhutan's official narrative of Gross National Happiness with analytical rigor and wit, examining the country's modernizing monarchy and Buddhist heritage. His account "traces the country's modernizing monarchy, its Buddhist heritage, and the complicated textures beneath the glossy surface of official narrative," according to the press release. Sen's poetry and photography serve as a counterpoint, with "spare, musical, and visually arresting" couplets and images capturing prayer flags, monasteries, and mountain light. The result is a "two-voiced, multi-modal portrait of a country at the crossroads of tradition and transformation."
Early praise highlights the book's unique approach. Acclaimed actress Shabana Azmi noted that Sen's "chiselled lyric poetry alongside his evocative photography, and Ravi Shankar's crisp prose, bring alive aspects of this country that only true artists can excavate and paint in their own signature styles." Dasho Kinley Dorji described Bhutan as "an elegant treasure trove" that captures what is special about the country. Poet Diane Mehta observed that Shankar's "wit and his sceptical commentary is a foil for Sen's delicate musical poetry."
Ravi Shankar is the author of 18 books, including the memoir Correctional (University of Wisconsin Press), and teaches at Tufts University. Sudeep Sen, author of over 25 books, has received a senior fellowship from the Government of India and is the first Asian to deliver the Derek Walcott Lecture. Bhutan is published by Drunken Boat / Fortunate Traveller Press and is available in trade paperback for $29.95.
