Thimphu houses do not sport rooftop antennas, but the video parlours stock enough options.
It is Saturday night in Thimphu and in this quiet town without bars, clubs or night life, the action is concentrated at the local video stores. A young man in his 20s steps in to pick up three films: Braveheart, Men of War and Agnisakshi. "I like everything, especially war movies," he says. "Social movies put me to sleep. I like action movies. Lots of people get killed in this. I mean, 1 hope so," he says about Men of War.
While Druk Yul, the land of the thunder dragon, has taken the Singapore path and banned the satellite dish antenna in the hope of limiting encroachment on what the monarchy describes as a fragile culture in need of protection, every comer on the main street of Norzin Lam boasts at least one video rental shop.
Glimpses of foreign culture are everywhere—Hindi and English video titles sit side by side on the shelves, including the most recent American releases: cops-and-bad-guys films like Heat, Seven and Executive Decision and children´s films like Babe. A George Michael poster fills up one wall of a shop, Hindi film posters line other walls. Bookstores stock Archie comic books, novels by best-selling Western writers like Danielle Steele and John Grisham and Hindi film magazines like Stardust. Tapes of pop music by groups like The Eagles sit beside a small selection of local artistes.