King Dad is a small press and film studio that is dedicated to uncommon topics of South Asian visual culture and music. In October I will be going to India to work on a documentary film, which will be produced under the King Dad banner. This will be a Hindi language film. As a Hindi-Urdu linguist, this will be a great chance to synthesize my linguistic and creative passions.

Lord of the Lips will focus on the Indian Whistler's Association, a collective of whistling enthusiasts based all over India. With big dreams and a passion for whistling, my friend Rigveda Deshpandey started the Indian Whistler's Association back in 2004. Since then he has created an expansive network of whistlers all over India. The range of whistling talents is expansive - from pucker whistlers, to bird whistlers, teeth whistlers, and warble whistlers. Membership is as diverse as is the range of talent - the association has members as young as 10, and as old as 75. The IWA states its mission as this:

...to find, meet and bring together, whistlers from all over India, onto a single platform, to change the perception of whistling in India, get it recognition as a "Performing Art" and its members as artists.

I will be going to Mumbai, Delhi, and Bangalore to document these whistlers and their passion for their craft.

Your support is essential as I work to meet daily production needs during October and November. Not only will your support help me in this regard, but you will also be supporting these whistlers by recognizing their passion for this unique art.

Please consider making a pledge today, and most of all, thank you for your time.

Best,

Grant Davis

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Example of the rewards:

• Mind Vision is a book of photographs taken in 2010 at strange theme parks, haunted houses, and construction sites in India. A paperback edition has been published by King Dad.

• Original compilation of the whistlers whistling their personal favorite Bollywood classics. (to be recorded during October/November)

• Mix tapes that sound like this, and this.

• Tote bag mock up:

• Frog Wearing a Tie: Ceramic frog featured in the video

Logo by www.mansishah.net