Khangri la montagna

Year: 1997 Duration: 77 minutes Finally a film on the living conditions of the Sherpas shot and produced by Nepalese. A long reflection on the inevitable changes, not always positive, caused by the large influx of tourists and mountaineers in the Khumbu region. If the economic benefits are beyond doubt, it is fair to ask whether the price that the inhabitants of that region pay for these benefits is not too high. Dedicated largely to the Sherpa profession, attracted by the easy and greater earnings, too many men have left their lives in those mountains, too many families have been decimated by this mirage of glory and money. Pemba, the protagonist, a former climber who lived abroad for many years, observes this new reality, this very different country. The ancient monasteries have given way to concrete buildings, electric lighting is almost everywhere. The woman he fell in love with became a nun after her husband died on an expedition. Pemba goes to visit the widow of a Sherpa friend of his who died in the mountains and she asks for his help to dissuade her son from following in his father's footsteps. But the boy is adamant and sets off on an expedition. The news will arrive that he has climbed Everest and, immediately after, another piece of news: the boy has been swept away by an avalanche. It's the end of a generation of Sherpas. In Nepali with Italian subtitles.