Diksha Sundriyal
Apple TV’s ‘Tenzing’ follows the trying journey of Tenzing Norgay as he achieves the feat of reaching the summit of Mt. Everest with Edmund Hillary for the first time in history. His personal ambition, sociological factors, and other struggles make for a compelling and inspirational story. The film charts his story from childhood, growing up in the shadow of Everest and harboring a dream of climbing the peak one day. We see his move from Tibet to Nepal, where his parents leave him at a monastery to help him recover from his illness. They are not seen again, and the film doesn’t answer what became of them or whether Tenzing ever saw them again. SPOILERS AHEAD.
The Film Tweaks Tenzing’s Parents’ Arc for Dramatic Effect
Tenzing Norgay was born in Tibet to Ghang La Mingma and Dokmo Kinzom. He was the 11th of their 13 children. Reportedly, when Tenzing was born, his mother had been visiting Ghang La, the nearby monastery whose name he later borrowed to christen his own house in Darjeeling, India. Later, the couple took him to Rongbuk Monastery, where a lama predicted that he would lead an exemplary life. However, that fame and success were still decades away, and his family struggled with financial difficulties. Mingma was a yak herder, so when an epidemic killed all his yaks, he had no way to support his family while living in the village.
Reportedly, he also owed a considerable debt to a local governor. At the end of the day, it was decided that a move to Nepal would be best for the family. In the film, the journey takes a toll on young Tenzing, and when he becomes too sick to continue, his parents leave him at a monastery to recuperate while they continue, promising to return for him when they can. In real life, no such thing is known to have happened. The family arrived in Nepal together in the early 1920s and settled in the Khumbu region. Still, the financial hardships continued. At one point, young Tenzing was sent to the Tengboche Monastery as his parents hoped he would become a monk.
However, that was not the kind of life he had envisioned for himself. The love for mountaineering had wormed its way into his heart, and soon, he left the monastery and came back home. He wanted to go to Darjeeling to start his career as a mountaineer, but his father refused to let him go. Mingma told him to support the family and become a yak herder. Tenzing honored his wish, but when he turned 19, he ran away from home. This was the last time he saw his father, who passed away in 1949. He returned to Khumbu in 1952 and was reunited with his mother.
Before leaving for the 1953 Everest expedition, he met her at Tengboche monastery, where she gave him her blessings. Reportedly, following their meeting, she returned to Thame. It is not clear when she passed away, but she was still alive in 1953, when her son made history by summiting Mt. Everest. The film does not show Tenzing’s reunion with or return to his mother; instead, it focuses on his relationship with his wife, Dawa, and their two daughters. Still, his roots and the memory of his parents, including the hardships they survived together, remain fresh in his mind, something he revisits when he has finally achieved the dream he had since he was just a boy herding yaks in his village in Tibet.
Read More: Is Pasang Based on a Real Sherpa? Why Didn’t He Like Tenzing?
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