Uploaded February 2026 | Updated September 2026, 2 weeks ago
Deep in the frozen heart of the Himalayas, the Zanskar Valley remains one of the last places on Earth cut off from the modern world during winter. For centuries, the only way in or out has been the "Chadar", a perilous trek along a frozen river where temperatures drop to -40°F.
In this documentary, we follow the final winter of total isolation for a remote community of Buddhist nuns at the Puntsokling nunnery. As a new road construction project threatens to permanently connect their sanctuary to global civilization, these women navigate extreme elements, dwindling resources, and internal shifts that challenge their ancestral way of life.
Documentary: Zanskar, A Winter of Happiness
Director: Caroline Riegel
Production: ARTE France & ZED (2021)
#Zanskar #Himalaya #WinterSurvival #Documentary #Buddhism #India #Geography #Anthropology #freedocumentary #slicedocumentary #documentaries #ecology #earth #environment #sustainability #climatechange
Deep in the frozen heart of the Himalayas, the Zanskar Valley remains one of the last places on Earth cut off from the modern world during winter. For centuries, the only way in or out has been the "Chadar", a perilous trek along a frozen river where temperatures drop to -40°F.
In this documentary, we follow the final winter of total isolation for a remote community of Buddhist nuns at the Puntsokling nunnery. As a new road construction project threatens to permanently connect their sanctuary to global civilization, these women navigate extreme elements, dwindling resources, and internal shifts that challenge their ancestral way of life.
Documentary: Zanskar, A Winter of Happiness
Director: Caroline Riegel
Production: ARTE France & ZED (2021)
#Zanskar #Himalaya #WinterSurvival #Documentary #Buddhism #India #Geography #Anthropology #freedocumentary #slicedocumentary #documentaries #ecology #earth #environment #sustainability #climatechange
