LUNANA: A YAK IN THE CLASSROOM

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Storyline (warning: spoilers)

The urban competitive lifestyle that we are leading right now makes one appreciate the calm and relaxed vibe of Lunana instantly. That being said, it couldn’t have been an easy task, by any standard, to shoot in such a remote village. In one of his interviews, Pawo Choyning Dorji mentioned that they had to reach there by an eight-day trek on foot and that they were dependent on solar batteries and chargers to shoot. It was like going to another world beyond civilization altogether.
The film’s story centers around Ugyen, a reluctant young teacher who doesn’t enjoy teaching as such. Instead, he wants to shift to Australia to become a singer. When he is sent to the remotest school in the world to teach, he abhors the idea so much that he decides to quit as soon as possible. One of the students says that he would like to become a teacher as teachers have the ability to ‘touch the future’. This makes Ugyen stop and think for a moment: even though he was a teacher, he had never thought about himself like that and had never even had such deep respect and regard for his profession.
This movie resembles a gentle teacher in a way — it makes us appreciate the basics that truly matter, such as the unparalleled joy of learning, of being in a place where we can make a difference and touch lives in our own little ways.
There is a reason why they say ‘no matter where you go, never forget where you came from’. The uncomplicated life that you grew up with, the little traditions you enjoy with family, the comforting aroma of a home-cooked meal and the familiar songs of childhood will give you contentment like nowhere else. Lunana: A Yak in the Classroom is about all these and much more. At the end, when Ugyen starts singing ‘Yak Lebi Lhadar’, the local Yak song of Lunana amidst foreigners, you know the song has taken him where his heart belongs. He is home!