Mohalla Films is an independent and international film collective based in San Francisco and Kolkata, founded in 2015 by Abhijeet Paul and Jack Whittington.

We are working on a series of short films dealing with life, work, and the ways we spend our days and interact in our communities.

The Films

Currently we are on location in Pondicherry, India shooting our first of three vignettes, Romain Rolland, focusing on a group of auto-rickshaw drivers who frequent a corner steps from the beach. Staleen, Salim, Selvam, Murugan, and their friends work ferrying tourists and locals to and from the popular promenade area. In this hot and humid off-season they spend much of their day hanging out, talking, drinking tea, and waiting for fares.

Other upcoming shoots include a segment on Kanmani, a novelist and mechanic, and other local authors, activists, and fishermen in the coastal region of Tamil Nadu battered in the 2004 tsunami.

Your Contribution

Working with local crews, and shooting on both 16mm film and digital video, your contributions will not only help us compensate our collaborators and offset the costs of production, but will also allow us to give back to the communities we are working in through donations to educational programs and sanitation projects.

Thank you for your support!

The Filmmakers

Jack Whittington is an artist, illustrator, designer, photographer, and now filmmaker. See more of his work at jackwhittington.com.

Abhijeet Paul is a literary critic and postdoctoral researcher in Vermont interested in the ethics of craft, repair-work, and analog machines.

Perks

• $10 Thank you postcard print
• $25 A3 size film poster (11.69 x 16.53in) designed by Jack Whittington
• $50 Mohalla Films logo t-shirt screen printed ethically in India on a high quality cotton tee.
• $100 Photo print from the film set, suitable for framing.
• $1000 20% Donation in your name to a community organization and a thank you credit in the film.

All contributors will receive updates on screenings, and an invitation to stream the films online once they premiere.