The Mountain Echoes Literary Festival brings together authors and singers all under the attentive eye of Bhutan’s Royal Queen Mother Ashi Dorji Wangmo Wangchuk, in an oasis of calm. Madhu Jain is charmed by the fairy-tale aspect of the place.
When we look up, a rather orangey moon appears to be nudging the sinister, ominous looking, three-storeyed house perched on a low hill. “ah, that looks like Dracula’s house,” says a saucer-eyed, 20-something journalist standing next to me. “no, i think it looks like Edward Rochester's house in Jane Eyre....” remarks the slightly older literary journalist, equally entranced by the strange sight. Whatever, it gives us goosebumps. We give a metaphorical shrug of our shoulders and return to the dinner being hosted by the ever-gracious Her majesty the royal Queen mother Ashi Dorji Wangmo Wangchuk.
We join the guests, who linger by the bar or sit around the elegantly laid tables under two white shamianas at the terma Linca resort and Spa, located a little outside Thimpu, Bhutan's capital. A rivulet of the river Thimpu gushes by in full spate. The hill and the rocks behind it look like sentinels, guarding the purity of the surroundings. It seems we have still not come down to earth from paradise. The evening marks the grand finale of the ninth edition of the mountain echoes Literary Festival, organised by the Indian Bhutan Foundation and the Jaipur-based literary agency Siyahi, headed by Mita Kapur.
HEAVEN ON EARTH
This story is from the October 2018 edition of Verve.
Start your 7-day Magzter GOLD free trial to access thousands of curated premium stories, and 8,500+ magazines and newspapers.
Already a subscriber ? Sign In
This story is from the October 2018 edition of Verve.
Start your 7-day Magzter GOLD free trial to access thousands of curated premium stories, and 8,500+ magazines and newspapers.
Already a subscriber? Sign In
Making Amends
This generation’s penchant for thoughtless consumption gets Madhu Jain roiled up, and she wonders if nature is getting its own back for our missteps…
Diamonds With Provenance
In keeping with the company’s commitment to environmental and social responsibility, Anisa Kamadoli Costa, chief sustainability officer at Tiffany & Co. and chairman and president at The Tiffany & Co. Foundation, enlightens Shirin Mehta on the efforts that make the jewellery giant an industry leader in transparency
SARTORIAL ECONOMICS
Sisters Tashi and Tara Mitra demonstrate to Akanksha Pandey how deviating from the mainstream can bend the way we think, live and dress
NOTES TO SELF
An anthropomorphized tiger’s perspective, a viscerally worded futuristic interpretation of loss, a critique of performative activism, a meta reflection on the earth’s crises. Told through different lenses, Janaki Lenin, Indrapramit Das, Keshava Guha and Roshan Ali’s stories — written exclusively for Verve — attempt to make sense of the fraught reality that we exist in today
The Eternal Optimist
As Generation X and xennials grapple with fully transitioning to conscious living, young millennials and Generation Z are leading the charge to reverse human-caused environmental damage. Sahar Mansoor, founder and CEO of the Bengaluru-based zero-waste social enterprise Bare Necessities, has a simple overarching philosophy: consume less and stay positive. Verve gets deeper into the mindset of the action-oriented earth advocate
Redemption SONGS
Indian music festivals have been demonstrating a refreshing sense of responsibility in terms of their ecological impact. Interacting with stakeholders who strive to make these large-scale events greener, Akhil Sood investigates the reasons behind the improved attitudes of audiences and the increase in corporate support.
earth hour
Crafted using nature’s elements, these dials draw inspiration from the many heterogeneous materials and hues around us.Verve turns its lens onto a mesmerising few
THE KIDS ARE ALL RIGHT
Children are holding adults accountable for both the grim future they are facing and the toll this is taking on their mental health. Madhumita Bhattacharyya initiates conversations with families of young climate activists and observes the extent to which parenting has changed in the face of catastrophe
NATURAL JUSTICE
Most of us are only just waking up to the urgency of climatic action. When the stakes are so high, what can individual action solve? Mridula Mary Paul, an environmental policy expert, is proof of the tenacity needed to effect systemic change. It’s not glamorous, and the rewards are few and far between, but that doesn’t stop her from aiming big, finds Anandita Bhalerao
Along For The Ride
Navigating Indian streets as a woman is hard enough. But what is it like while riding a bicycle? Bengaluru-based Shreya Dasgupta, a regular cyclist, speaks to five urban women about the pros and cons of this increasingly popular means of transport.
