The movie happens in the snowy Nepalese Himalayas at some point not specified. Pema (Thinley Lhamo) marries three brothers: Tashi (Tenzin Dalha), Karma (Sonam Topden), and Dawa (Karma Wangyal Gurung), who is around nine years old. In this society, polyandry is accepted widely if not encouraged so the whole community rejoices in their union. The priest tells us that it’s Pema’s duty as a wife to take care of her husbands but it’s not that easy! These are social burdens placed only on women even though these arrangements are uncommon elsewhere. Male polygamist societies put more emphasis on sex; they expect males to derive pleasure from having many partners, unlike Shambhala where there isn’t any indication of any such thing (no incestuous or paedophilic foursome you should watch another movie for these sick thrills). In short, this type of polygamy does not empower women.
The funniest and warmest parts come during the first half when Kawa tries to act like an adult in his role as husband which he clearly isn’t since he’s still very much a child, small with no signs of puberty showing yet making his voice squeaky soft. “You are beating your husband” he shouts back at Pema after she slaps him for making some snide remark about something else entirely. Karma is quiet and introverted even for a monk. So mostly Pema has a motherly relationship towards Kawa while with Karma it’s more like aromantic friendship or something along those lines hence why it works between them leaving Tashi the undisputed alpha husband.
The huge landscapes create an initially very peaceful background for their relationship against which most things work well together at first. Mountains look great from up close during day time but nothing can beat interactions by night when faces get impressively lit by fireplaces and torches (a highly naturalistic effect). The camera moves subtly too with lots of tracking shots as well slow panning. These mountains then become a near-impossible challenge if not a death trap from the second part onwards after Pema and Karma set off on horseback in search of Tashi who has disappeared having heard that she is pregnant by Dawa’s school teacher Ram Sir (Karma Shakya) so they want to prove him wrong and bring him back home safe.
Shambhala is a meditative movie peppered with visions and allegorical scenes. The title refers to an imaginary spiritual paradise shown in the film through sepia-toned daydream sequences where we always see an old man with long white beard (Pena’s mentor, also known as riponche) leading the way but there are indications that this may not be so for much longer either. For example, Pema has a nightmare that she gives birth to shaggy wild ox: “I opened my legs and saw a yak coming out”. This isn’t depicted visually but it should serve as warning signs for us all since tranquility can never last forever.
Shambhala has just premiered in the Official Competition of the 74th Berlin International Film Festival.
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