Disciples of a crazy saint: the Buchen of Spiti

The Buchen are specialist religious performers from Spiti, a culturally Tibetan valley in North India. They are widely known for performing an elaborate exorcism ritual that culminates in a slab of stone, marked with images of demons, being smashed on a man’s belly. In winter groups of Buchen perform their religious theatre, a localised form of Ache Lhamo, the Tibetan Opera.

Patrick Sutherland has been photographing in Spiti for over a decade and working with the Buchen for several years. This exhibition results from him returning his own and other historical photographs to Spiti, in order to involve the Buchen themselves in the process of producing a documentation of their theatre, rituals and social role.