Top tip Click on the play button to stay on the website

Bhutan is a country that measures national happiness as a way of human custodianship, but how does that upbringing impact the way you see life and interact with the existential ideas whilst forging your own career? In today’s show we meet with Kelly Doriji, a familiar face in Bollywood, South Indian Cinema and the modelling world, to take on an inspired discussion that looks at the foundation of thought of Bhutan and how it helped inspire his own voyage into the Arts.

About Kelly Doriji – courtesy of Wikipedia
Early life

Dorji's father is Lynpo Paljor Dorji, widely known as Dasho Benji, the permanent advisor to Bhutan's National Environment Commission. His mother is Louise Dorji, an author of children's books and a founding member of Bhutan Broadcasting Service (BBS). Dorji attended St. Paul's School in Darjeeling and Sherubtse College in eastern Bhutan. He earned an honors degree in History at St. Xavier's College in Mumbai. Dorji's grandfather was Bhutanese Prime Minister Jigme Palden Dorji. Dorji is a member of the Dorji Family of Bhutan and descendant of the Sikkim Royal Family.[1][2]

Career
Modelling

Kelly Dorji rose to prominence as a fashion model in the late-1990s and early 2000s in India. He worked as a runway model in India for designers such as Shahab Durazi, JJ Valaya, Arun Khanna, Rohit Bal, and Tarun Tahiliani and as a print model in London for Models Out of Town. Dorji hosted English television show 'Star Biz' for Star TV with co-anchor Lisa Ray.

Acting

Kelly Dorji has acted in almost 30 films over the course of his career. He made his acting debut in 2005 as the main antagonist opposite Ajay Devgan and Bobby Deol in Mani Shankar's Tango Charlie. In 2008, Dorji moved to the Telugu film industry where he gained recognition for films such as the 2007 action hit Don opposite Nagarjuna and Ek Ka Dum opposite Mahesh Babu. Dorji has also been influential in boosting the popularity of Bhutanese films in his own country with the release of his Dzongkha film Sem Gawai Tasha in 2011.[6]

Dorji is well known for his own film stunts, much of which were self-choreographed. He also designed sequences for pageants, and assisted choreographer Lubna Adam. After a near death accident in 2013, Dorji limits his stunt work in films but continues to act.

Art[edit]

Kelly Dorji is a painter and photographer. He has studied painting with a number of artists including Elsie Evans, Sidharth, and Karma Wangdi. He studied photography with fashion photographer Chien-Wien Lee. Dorji exhibits his work at contemporary art gallery Gray Area in Thimphu, Bhutan.[10][11]

Personal life

Dorji dated Bollywood actress Lara Dutta for 9 years before their relationship came to an end in 2007

He currently lives in Thimphu, Bhutan. He owns a luxury travel company, Terton Travel Bhutan.

Service

Dorji supports the Bhutanese contemporary art sector more broadly as an advisor on the board of the Voluntary Artist's Studio of Thimphu (VAST). Dorji serves an executive board member for the Tarayana Foundation. An avid enduro motorcylist, Dorji rides for charity with the Tarayana Dragons.

Kelly Doriji since recording has become a Global Indian Ambassador to for the arts in Bhutan.

About the Global Indian Series:

My name is Rajan Nazran Chief Explorer for the Global Indian Series, the official platform for people of Indian origin (PIO), because let’s face it, we are everywhere!

For almost 15 years we have travelled across the globe covering 58 countries to date whilst exploring the kaleidoscope of our remarkable 50 shades of brown community.

Voyaging to the edges of the Amazon, facing Ebola in West Africa, being held hostage in Eastern Europe, tapping rubber in Malaysia, drinking chai with Heads of State and sharing laughter with local fishermen – I have been there, looking for us!

Our purpose is simple, to build a living encyclopaedia of the human experience of the community and a safe mooring ground for open discussions, whether you are an NRI, Indian Diaspora, person of Indian origin (PIO) or a fan of South Asian anthropology, what we do is bring people and communities together.

We do this by plunging into the human experience of being a person of Indian origin (PIO), taking a second look at the countries we now call home and tackling the conversations we need to know more about.

Through our range of award-winning original content (print, podcasts, events and TV) and fascinating discussions, our impactful stories and platforms have spearheaded national and international conversations that have brought people together.  Our work is featured in global brands including The Indian Express through to the CNBC network.

How to get involved:

Interested in getting involved in building the world’s largest living encyclopaedia on the community? Whether you want to become a patron, buy us a chai in a new location or have your story shown, simply get in touch via our website, we would love to hear from you. www.globalindianseries.com

Social media:

You can reach Rajan via

Global Indian Series (@rajannazran) • Instagram photos and videos

(1) Rajan (Singh) Nazran | LinkedIn

Global Indian Series - YouTube

Special thank you to TAIZU for the music

Episode: 104

Presenter – Rajan Nazran

Producer –Global Indian Series/NazranRoth

Guests: in order of appearance

Alex

Kelly Dorji

Other podcasts you may like:

If you liked this podcast, you may enjoy the following:

FAITH, BELIEF AND BRITISHNESS | WITH LORD INDARJIT SINGH (globalindianseries.com)

THE SEXUAL PARADOX OF INDIA: HRH MANVENDRA SINGH GOHIL (globalindianseries.com)

HISTORY OF INDIANNESS – VOYAGE THROUGH THE AGES – FINAL LEG (globalindianseries.com)

Are you a Global Indian that wants to go global?  Visit our website to understand more about the leading countries to trust and ultimately the ones to avoid. From gritty discussions on citizenship by investment, through to how to find work abroad, top university guides and social issues for change. We are the official platform for People of Indian origin.

We produce content that inspires purpose, passion, and community. If you like what we do, please do share, like, subscribe and comment. It helps massively with online algorithms.

-------------------------------

Support change: A little favour to ask-We believe true freedom is to be able to act without fear or favour and that identity is not a “brand” to be abused, politicized, or reduced for personal gain. As Global Indians, the need to work together is greater now than ever before.  If we want to see real change, we need to create a better society for all, tackle injustice and plunge into the many aspects of what the human experience truly offers.The Global Indian Series has been built to be a platform of integrity, fairness and to remain fiercely independent of political influence. We are the first in the world to connect with every echelon of society with all human voices being treated equally.  We are the first to have travelled physically to locations far and wide, often putting our own lives on the line to bring forward stories that deserve to be told.  Whether it’s through our Podcast that delves into the human experience behind identity, our articles and features that cover key events we need to know, or live based events that tackle topical discussions, we have been there to support a better community and planet.Despite the high costs and time needed to maintain our work, we continue, because we know our work has helped more people understand what is happening within the communities across our planet, why it matters, and how, together, we can demand progress.  We challenge head-on, the silent divisions that have crept into our collective consciousness and how to tackle key issues that often go neglected in mainstream media.How you can help:Please share our work: By collaborating with others who share our values, our combined voices make change, with many more becoming inspired to take meaningful action.Subscribe to the platform:Many from across our community have decided to subscribe to our platform. It helps us grow which in turns attracts like-minded supporters. If you have not already, we would appreciate you subscribing to our newsletters and following our social media accounts. It is free and supports our journey.