Sherpas in Darjeeling have long stood at the heart of Himalayan mountaineering, yet their histories have rarely been written from their own perspective.

In this event, we bring together Nandini Purandare and Deepa Balsavar in conversation on their book The Sherpa Trail (Roli Books, 2024; international edition Headstrap, Mountaineers Books, Seattle). The discussion will be moderated by Vasumathi Srinivasan, and will explore how the book gathers the experiences of Sherpas across generations—guides, workers, climbers—whose lives shaped the history of high-altitude mountaineering.

The book has received wide recognition, including the Climbing Writing Award at the Banff Mountain Film and Book Festival, the Boardman Tasker Award for Mountain Literature at Kendal, the Kalinga Award for Non-Fiction, and the Kekoo Naoroji Award for Mountain Writing. It was also selected for the INDIES North America list of outstanding books by librarians and booksellers. Significantly, this is the first time in the 42-year history of the Boardman Tasker Award that non-Western authors have been honoured.

A Q&A with the audience will follow the discussion.