Book review: There is no scope for boredom in Mala Kumar’s new book Up the Mountains of India

Are you into beaches or mountains? People often ask this question when they are getting to know each other’s favourite holiday destinations. I used to be more of a beach person but I am turning into a mountain person – the sort who looks dreamily at peaks from a distant coffee shop, and admires their beauty, but has no interest in climbing or conquering them. If you too are a mountain person, look up Mala Kumar’s new book Up the Mountains of India (2022) published by Hachette India. It aims to take you on “a fun, fact-filled trek across the country’s major ranges” – the Himalayas, the Trans-Himalayas, the Aravallis, the Vindhyas, the Satpuras, the North-east mountains, the Eastern Ghats, and the Western Ghats. Kumar writes, “Humans depend largely on mountains for their essential supply of freshwater, hydroelectricity, timber and food. Mountains affect the climate around the world by letting through or blocking monsoon winds.” She also points out that many species of animals, birds, insects, trees and plants – and human beings, of course – call the mountains their home. We are told that, in 2016, Javed Ahmed, Rajashree Khalap and Sumukha J N “discovered a species of spider that looked like the sorting hat in J K Rowling’s Harry Potter stories.” This species was found in a sacred grove in the Western Ghats, more specifically in the Shivamogga district of Karnataka. Since these three people are Harry Potter fans, they named the spider “Eriovixia gryffindori”. Rowling was mighty pleased when she heard this. Kumar, who sounds like a Potter fan herself, writes, “This spider is a smart little mimic and can look like a piece of dry leaf; with this camouflage, it certainly doesn’t need an invisibility cloak. She also identifies several communities that live in the mountains, depend on them for their sustenance, and also revere them. Among them are the Sherpas, “an ethnic people who have descended from the earliest settlers in the Tibetan Plateau some 6000-9000 years ago.” If you are enthusiastic about trekking in the Himalayas, you might have even come across them. Kumar adds, “Their nimble feet, their unusual physical endurance in high-altitude conditions, their knowledge of the mountains and their ability to read the weather accurately have made them the most trusted travel guides in the high Himalayas.” However, she also cautions us against assuming that all Sherpas take on the same job. The stereotype is best avoided. In this book, you will also read about the Idu Mishmi tribe in the extreme north of Arunachal Pradesh. They “protect and nurture” the forests of the Mishmi Hills “at the junction of the north-eastern Himalayas and the Indo=Myanmar ranges”. I was surprised to read about the existence of animals called “binturongs”. Kumar mentions that they are also called “bearcats” though they are neither cats nor bears. The foodie in her supplies us with an unusual and hilarious piece of information. Apparently, binturongs “smell like buttered popcorn”. I enjoyed the book as it draws from different fields of knowledge such as geology, history, botany, geometry, meteorology, and more. The author brings in facts and figures but always balances them with stories and trivia. Having written over 40 picture books for children, and edited many others for over a decade, she knows how to hold her grip on the reader’s attention. There is no scope for boredom even if her book cannot be called a page-turner. In this book, you will read about ancient Buddhist kingdoms, pakoras made of rhododendron flowers, a floating national park, rock-cut sculptures, ice stupas, cave used by robbers to stash away their valuables, and hot springs in the mountains. You will meet mountaineers, conservationists, engineers, historians, traders, authors, and travellers – all of whom have contributed in some way or the other to our current understanding of the mountains of India. Can there be a book about mountains in India without any discussion of hill stations and mountain railways? Certainly not! The author writes about the Darjeeling Himalayan Railway, the Nilgiri Mountain Railway, the Kalka-Shimla Railway, the Matheran Hill Railway, and “other train rides that show off India’s mountains”. One example is the Sanghamitra Express between Bengaluru and Pataliputra, which “crosses the hills and forests of the Satpura Range before it reaches Itarsi in Madhya Pradesh”. As you can see, Kumar is a gifted writer who knows exactly how to evoke the spirit of a place and get us all excited. Kumar also draws attention to threats faced by the mountains, and what we can do to take care of them. Her list of ideas includes mindful trekking, nature journaling, learning about people who live in the mountains, buying “ethical products” made in the mountains, and visiting wildlife sanctuaries and parks in the hills to help them earn revenue. I was happy to read this list because it made me revisit memories of being in McLeodganj, Dharamkot and Bhagsu. In addition to the mountains, I was moved by people who volunteered to clean up the mountains, pick up garbage left by trekkers, and bring it down for recycling or safe disposal. These are beautiful places but we need to stop littering to make sure they stay beautiful. Chintan Girish Modi is a journalist, commentator, and book reviewer. Read all the  Latest News _,_  Trending News _,_  Cricket News _,_  Bollywood News _,_  India News  and  Entertainment News  here. Follow us on  Facebook _,_  Twitter  and  Instagram _._