Travellers & Magicians

Story

Travellers and Magicians is a 2003 Bhutanese Dzongkha language film written and directed by Khyentse Norbu, a reincarnate lama of Tibetan Buddhism, who is also known as Dzongsar Jamyang Khyentse Rinpoche. The movie is the first feature film shot entirely in the Kingdom of Bhutan. The proprietor of Bhutan Methoma Tours, Lhakpa Dorji, acted as one of the main cast ‘Tashi’ the magician in this internationally acclaimed movie “Travellers and Magicians”. Dzongsar Jamyang Khyentse Rinpoche is also the writer and director of “The Cup”, “Vara: A Blessing” and forthcoming “Hema Hema: Sing me a song while I wait”. Lhakpa Dorji has traveled to places in Taiwan and cities in Australia for the promotion of the movie. He gave interviews to radio, television and newspapers. The

According to the director, the story of Dendup was inspired by Izu No Odoriko (The Dancing Girl of Izu), a story by Yasunari Kawabata about a group of travellers and an infatuation between a dancing girl and a schoolboy. The story of Tashi was inspired by a Buddhist fable about two brothers, one of whom aspires to become a magician.

In making this film, Dzongsar Jamyang Khyentse Rinpoche, an internationally renowned Buddhist lama, sets the standard for the nascent Bhutanese film industry. The film depicts traditional Bhutanese folklore, and storytelling techniques. Travellers and Magicians is a profoundly Bhutanese film, with a theme and vocabulary that reflects the culture of Bhutan.

The storytelling technique employed in the film is the one of a story within a story, as the monk narrates the story of Tashi within the film. The nesting of worlds go three levels deep, as Tashi hallucinates/dreams after consuming chhang(alcohol). Traditional, as well as fusion music is used in the movie, with Western rock and Western-influenced music being heard via Dondup’s music system, and traditional music from the dramyin(traditional guitar) of the monk and as ambient music. The noted chant music advocate David Hykes also contributed music to the film at the invitation of the director. A soundtrack of the movie has been commercially released.

Travellers and Magicians was met with overwhelming critical acclaim, earning a Rotten Tomatoes approval rating of 93% of critics who rated it out of 59 critic reviews, giving it a Certified “Fresh” rating. The movie was the official selection for Toronto International Film Festival, Venice International Film Festival, Winner of Audience Award in Deauville Asian Film Festival and Winner of Emerging Director Award in Asian American Film Festival.

We make sure that we include shooting spots of the film Travellers and Magicians opposite Dobji Dzong and a guided tour for the days in Thimphu by the actor himself in the itinerary.