Trade across the Himalayas: The tale of Shauka Bhotiya people, Uttarakhand
Across the length of the Himalayas, several groups of people collectively known as Bhotiyas by people of the rest of India and Nepal used to reside. There chief occupation was trading goods and acting as middlemen between Tibet and India.
This, is their story. More specificallly, the story of Shauka people, who live in the Johar Valley of Pithoragarh District, in Kumaon, Uttarakhand, India, from their origins, history, culture, their annual migration and the details of their annual trade with Tibet. You might have heard of places like Milam or Munsyari, which were settled by the Shaukas.
Well, enjoy!
Credits:
Thankyou very much to Dr. Shekhar Pathak for taking time and so kindly contributing to the video in such a major way.
Thankyou very much as well to Deepak Bafila for the beautiful shots used all in and around the video. Check him out here:
YouTube: @deepakbafila08/
Instagram:
Thanks as well to Shashank Rawat
and Krishna Dhami
for a couple of Drone Shots.
Digital SOAS for picture of Thakali people
All Scenes of Jadh People from the film Tibetan Traders by Atlantic films
via A/V Geeks 16mm Films:
Creative commons & Public Domain:
Shaka Golden Man by eggry, CC BY-SA 2.0, via Wikimedia Commons
Golden Buddha statue by epSos. de, CC BY 2.0, via Wikimedia Commons
Ngari Tsaparang by yuen yan, CC BY-SA 2.0 , via Wikimedia Commons
Sakya monks by I, Luca Galuzzi, CC BY-SA 2.5, via Wikimedia Commons
Gandhara Kushanas by I, Sailko, CC BY-SA 3.0, via Wikimedia Commons
Town of Didihat by Khushwant Kafaliya, CC BY-SA 4.0, via Wikimedia Commons
Shaka horseman by Eggry, CC BY-SA 4.0, via Wikimedia Commons
Sakya Monastery by Prof Ranga Sai, CC BY-SA 4.0 , via Wikimedia Commons
Sources:
Himalayan Gazetteer by E. T. Atkinson (1882)
Kumaun Ka Itihas by Badridutt Pandey (1936)
Madhya Himalaya Ki Bhotiya Janjaati : Johar Ke Shauka by
And general internet, from wikipedia to Google Earth.
Timecodes:
00:00 - 01:40 Introduction
01:41 - 04:10 The Bhotiyas of Uttarakhand
04:11 - 06:25 The Geography of Johar
06:26 - 15:40 Origin of Shaukas & History
15:41 - 25:30 Trade with Tibet, and culture of Shaukas
25:31 - 26:09 Ending