Sanjeev Satgainya

Kathmandu:

A former member of Indian Foreign Service, Deb Mukharji’s love for Nepal always made him walk around and along the Himalayas. A keen lover of nature and mountains, one gadget that he never left alone and that always accompanied him was his camera. Four decades of journeying around the Himalayas, Mukharji captures best of the shots available from peaks to gorges, terrains to plains, temples to cities, whatever his magical eyes could explore through his camera lens. The magnificent portrayals that are outcome of his dedication of revering the nature have found substantial spaces in many journals over the years. The mystifying images that he took out of nature in an immortal form have helped décor galleries around Nepal, India and Bangladesh time and again. When he came to Nepal in 1999 as an ambassador, this avid lover of nature could not resist continuing exploring more and nurturing his love for scenery and picturesque views of this country. He thought about a book. And here we have in our hand, with best of portraits of splendid beauty captured through his camera, the book ‘Magic of Nepal’.

The book was launched on May 15. The book begins with (leaving out eloquently written forewords by Stan Armington of which we cannot miss a mention later) the exquisite metalwork on a temple door and wood carvings of Patan, which suggests a door opening to some majestic images captured inside the book. It is divided into eight segments. The first part is dedicated to the beauty of medieval Kathmandu and around imprisoning the images superbly in black and white and colour (— be it a standing guard in Hanumandhoka or morning worship on the roadside — all of them speak eloquently none the less). The rest of the parts encompass the tranquil natural and wild beauty of Himalayas and rivers, valleys and gorges. Mukharji admits that the Langtang region is one of the ranges he began trekking and photography with when he decided to do the project. Mukharji’s shutters are so ably functional here that whatever he confines in his reels are a marvel — be it Langtang Lirul that overlooks Langtang village or the Lamtang Himal in the morning light.

While he walks into the lap of the Annapurna Range and wakes up to observe the sunrise at Poon Hill walking past Ghandruk, he does not forget to romance the Annapurna South peak and as she is captured, her blush is conspicuous. Subsequently, Mukharji strolls along the Kali Gandaki range observing the panoramic view of the Kagbeni Valley and the enticing Marpha, which he does not forget to dub “the apple pie trail”. On black and white, the majestic view of Kali Gandaki Beyond Jomsom is yet another fabulous work by the author and to follow this up is the Rara Lake’s brilliant view under the blue sky. The author says, “Rara will always be associated in my mind with a tragic chapter in the history of Nepal.” While the author has mentioned the Sagarmatha (Mt Everest) region was not featured on his priority list, the author has created a tour de force with it. And the last but not the least is ‘Marsyangdi Postscript’ with vibrant, spectacular and captivating beauty of a suspension bridge, the Marsyangdi gorge, glamourous jungle orchids and an extended view of Manaslu Himal.

Covering a major part of the mountain landscape of Nepal is no doubt a mammoth task. Mukharji’s narration, his experience with the locales and in-depth descriptions makes the book more than a mere depiction of the majestic, extraordinary and grand allure of Nepal. A complete travelogue, where the pictures speak volumes. As Stan Armington writes, “Deb Mukharji continually managed to document history and local legend during each long day on the trail and was able to add the colour of personal experience to the details of the hike.”