Himalaya, the Journal of the Association for Nepal and Himalayan Studies Volume 32 Number 1 Ladakh: Contemporary Publics and Politics Article 13 No. 1 & 2 8-1-2013 The mpI ortance of Being Ladakhi: Affect and Artifice in Kargil Radhika Gupta Max Planck Institute for the Study of Religious & Ethnic Diversity,
[email protected] Follow this and additional works at: http://digitalcommons.macalester.edu/himalaya Recommended Citation Gupta, Radhika (2012) "The mporI tance of Being Ladakhi: Affect and Artifice in Kargil," Himalaya, the Journal of the Association for Nepal and Himalayan Studies: Vol. 32: No. 1, Article 13. Available at: http://digitalcommons.macalester.edu/himalaya/vol32/iss1/13 This Research Article is brought to you for free and open access by the DigitalCommons@Macalester College at DigitalCommons@Macalester College. It has been accepted for inclusion in Himalaya, the Journal of the Association for Nepal and Himalayan Studies by an authorized administrator of DigitalCommons@Macalester College. For more information, please contact
[email protected]. RADHIKA GUPTA MAX PLANCK INSTITUTE FOR THE STUDY OF RELIGIOUS & ETHNIC DIVERSITY THE IMPORTANCE OF BEING LADAKHI: AFFECT AND ARTIFICE IN KARGIL Ladakh often tends to be associated predominantly with its Tibetan Buddhist inhabitants in the wider public imagination both in India and abroad. It comes as a surprise to many that half the population of this region is Muslim, the majority belonging to the Twelver Shi‘i sect and living in Kargil district. This article will discuss the importance of being Ladakhi for Kargili Shias through an ethnographic account of a journey I shared with a group of cultural activists from Leh to Kargil.