Drunken Boat / Fortunate Traveller Press has released Bhutan, a multi-genre collaboration between poet and photographer Sudeep Sen and writer Ravi Shankar that challenges the romanticized image of the Himalayan kingdom. The book, available on Amazon, combines Sen's lyric poetry and evocative photography with Shankar's analytical prose to present a layered portrait of a nation at a crossroads between tradition and modernization.
Bhutan has long cultivated its reputation as the world's last Shangri-La, measuring prosperity through Gross National Happiness rather than GDP. Shankar, a Pushcart Prize winner whose work has appeared in The New York Times and The Paris Review, approaches this claim with "wit, analytical rigour, and genuine wonder," according to the publisher. His prose traces the country's modernizing monarchy and Buddhist heritage while uncovering the complicated textures beneath the official narrative.
Sen, an internationally acclaimed poet and photographer whose work has been featured in The Guardian and The Times Literary Supplement, provides a visual and poetic counterpoint. His couplets operate as "short flashes of organic form—obsessed with colour, texture, and the sacred," while his photographs of prayer flags, monasteries, and mountain light carry the same lyric precision. Together, the two writers create a "two-voiced, multi-modal portrait" that the publisher describes as "a literary reckoning with place, beauty, and the stories nations tell about themselves."
The book has garnered praise from notable figures. Actress Shabana Azmi called it "a unique and personal multi-genre book" that brings alive aspects of Bhutan "that only true artists can excavate." Dasho Kinley Dorji described it as "an elegant treasure trove" capturing what is special about the country. Poet Diane Mehta noted that Shankar's "wit and his sceptical commentary is a foil for Sen's delicate musical poetry," resulting in a "deceptively pretty book" with a two-way narrative tracking "the forward motion of experience on the road to transcendence."
The significance of Bhutan lies in its refusal to accept surface-level narratives. While the country promotes an image of universal happiness, Shankar and Sen delve into the complexities of a society balancing ancient Buddhist traditions with rapid modernization. The book offers a nuanced view that acknowledges both the beauty and the challenges of a nation often reduced to a single statistic. As author Amit Majmudar wrote, the book provides "a sheen of eudemonic delight and heightened astonished awareness" while taking "a loving but analytical approach to Bhutan's claim of being the happiest country on earth."
Bhutan is published by Drunken Boat / Fortunate Traveller Press in trade paperback format with full-colour images. It is categorized as multi-genre literary travel, blending poetry and photography. The book is priced at $29.95 and is available through Amazon.
