The Unexplored Kingdom- People & Folk Cultures of Bhutana

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About the Book Bhutan, the Land of the Thunder Dragon, has retained its rich heritage and natural treasures, hidden amongst the ridges of the Himalayas. Over the centuries, the basic character of the people and their lifestyles have remained unchanged despite political overturns. Even as we penetrate to the core of the country, we still remain astonished by the unparalleled beauty of Bhutan, its culture, and its people.

About the Author Subrata Sanyal, an engineer by profession, is currently engaged as a consultant of techno-commercial services. Having been born and brought up in North Bengal, he feels a close relationship with the people of Bhutan with whom he has interacted during the course of his professional visits over the last 20 years.

Preface It was a dull July evening in 1998 when I landed for my maiden professional visit to Bhutan. The place was a project site near Gedu in Chukha district, which was then under the human initiative to exploit its virgin natural background. But the upper ridges still exhibited a beautiful natural landscape, asking the viewers to explore it and discover a totally alien world. The people living there also truly reflected a simple but sophisticated heritage which they had been carrying forward in the lap of Mother Earth. Thus, in the course of my stay in Bhutan either during my maiden visit or my subsequent journeys-I have wholeheartedly been let’s infatuated by the natural beauty of the surroundings and the calm, but rich. lifestyle of the local inhabitants.

Since the beginning, the majority of my trips to different sites in Bhutan have related to hydroelectric projects. The hydroelectric project at Chukha was the country had undertaken with financial collaboration with the Government f India. This was an Endeavour to utilize its water resources and to become economically developed. The projects at Tale, Kurichu, and Puna-tangchu were executed in succession in the following decades. So, since my first visit, I could see how fast the country had executed various infrastructural projects like roads, bridges, air connectivity, and schools. Simultaneously the influx of the first generation from the rural belts to major commercial hubs could also be noticed.

Initially, I had an opportunity to closely observe the Bhutanese countrymen on their maiden trip to these project sites and towns. The people employed in the projects were invariably unskilled and mostly illiterate. They were very shy, quiet. and courteous, and always found it uncomfortable to mix freely with the Indians who were hired for the execution of technical jobs.

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