Shangri-La might just be an imaginary place in writer James Hilton’s book, Lost Horizon (1933). Then again, maybe not. In this uncertainty lies my hope. Every time I get a chance to travel to the Himalayas, the hope of finding Shangri-La is rekindled. This time, I am heading to Lo Manthang, a walled city in Nepal’s Upper Mustang, to take part in Royal Enfield’s Himalayan Adventure motorcycle ride. Not many tourists have experienced the desolate yet dreamy world of Lo Manthang. The roads that lead you there wind through a breath-taking high-altitude Himalayan vista. To experience it, you have to be free from the distractions of the world below. That is why I decided to stay away from my mobile phone for two weeks. Would I be able to do it in this age when life without mobile connectivity may be an existential crisis waiting to happen?
This is not the first time I am going incommunicado. I had stayed away from my iPhone for 10 days during a Vipassana meditation course in 2012. But the words OTP and OTT were non-existent in those days. Now, the situation is different. Your mobile number is your identity, your brain is stored on your phone’s cloud, and if you do not constantly update your status on social media, you might as well have disappeared off the face of the earth.
Esta historia es de la edición July 10, 2022 de THE WEEK India.
Comience su prueba gratuita de Magzter GOLD de 7 días para acceder a miles de historias premium seleccionadas y a más de 8500 revistas y periódicos.
Ya eres suscriptor ? Conectar
Esta historia es de la edición July 10, 2022 de THE WEEK India.
Comience su prueba gratuita de Magzter GOLD de 7 días para acceder a miles de historias premium seleccionadas y a más de 8500 revistas y periódicos.
Ya eres suscriptor? Conectar
There Is A Wind Blowing Against The BJP, And It Will Only Pick Up Speed
Interview - Akhilesh Yadav, Former Chief Minister, Uttar Pradesh
Between hospital and home
Transitional care centres can add a lot to India's health care system
EFFORT VS EFFECT
The government's attempts to ensure quality drugs is evident, but how well new policies can be monitored on the ground remains to be seen
A way to let go of fear
Accepting the use of adult diapers is a journey with various stages-denial, concealment, rejection and reluctance
Mandeeps & a miracle
Two strangers, one deadly disease and an act of kindness. How Mandeep Mann saved Mandeep Singh, an acute leukaemia patient, by donating his stem cells
The A, B, C of cosmetic surgery
Between eight to 10 lakh cosmetic surgeries happen in India every year. Who is an ideal candidate, and what are the risks and results you can expect?
Vaccines and meningitis
In sub-Saharan Africa, from Senegal in the west to Ethiopia in the east, and encompassing the northern part of Nigeria, there exists a region known as the African Meningitis Belt (AMB).
Celebrating diversity and inclusivity
As Indians battle it out in our nation's 18th general election, it is again time for voters to reflect on the \"Idea of India\"-or rather, on two duelling ideas of India that are now before us and between which the nation must choose at the ballot box.
Defendant: an Hermès handbag
When Hermès was hit with a class-action lawsuit last month for \"antitrust\" activities, it didn't see it coming. Most of the luxury world has all eyes on this suit, filed by two interested consumers who claim they were denied a purchase, and whether it would go to trial.
A legacy, bound
Amal Allana's biography of her father, Ebrahim Alkazi, is as much personal as it is historical
