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The Himalayas, the tallest and the youngest mountains in the world, spread from Afghanistan and Pakistan through India, Bhutan, Nepal and Myanmar with their northern extrusions – the Ximalaya Shanmai – across the Tibetan plateau in China. Despite border restrictions, the inhabitants of this region continue to share a trans-Himalayan identity, fragile yet enduring. The Himalayan Arc focuses on a crucial, enthralling, politically turbulent, yet often underreported part of this Himalayan belt – the ‘East of South-east’. With over thirty contributors, it attempts to describe the sense of shared lives and cultural connectivity between the denizens of this area. Poetry, fiction, and mysticism are juxtaposed with essays on strategy and diplomacy, espionage and the deep state, photographs, folk tales, and fables. From the unique identity of a Himalayan citizen to the ‘geopolitical jigsaw’ that is the region; from the hidden spy network in Kathmandu to intimate portraits of Shillong, Gangtok, Darjeeling, and other cities; from the insurgency in Assam to a portrait of Myanmar under military rule, the essays, stories, and poems in this anthology highlight the similarities within the differences of the Himalayan belt. Providing insider and outsider perspectives on this intriguing part of the world, The Himalayan Arc is a travel book with a difference. Contributors: Janice Pariat, Salil Tripathi, Ma Thida, Indra Bahadur Rai, Prajwal Parajuly, David Malone, Chetan Raj Shrestha, Kanak Mani Dixit, Sujeev Shakya, Pushpesh Pant, John Elliott, Amish Raj Mulmi, Thomas Bell, Sushma Joshi, Sanjoy Hazarika, Sudhindra Sharma, Tshering Tashi, Abhay K., Manoj Joshi, Catherine Anderson, Andrew Duff, Binodini, Jacqueline Zote, Aruni Kashyap, Sameer Tanti, Nitoo Das, Lutfa Hanum Selima Begum, Uddipana Goswami, Robin Ngangom, Akhu Chingangbam, Indira Goswami, Andrew Selth, Tulsi Badrinath, Meghna Pant, Mamang Dai, Desmond Kharmawphlang
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