‘Shiver’: Music Video, Art Installation, Documentary, Live Performance

Shiver is a mixed-format art project with expanding goals.  It mixes dance, music, poetry, documentary, and a video installation to communicate an experience of how the feminine is being treated/expressed/caged/safe-guarded/manifested across humanity. 

"The experience of the feminine is universal, it just depends on when and where in the timeline of civilization you are checking-in.  This piece is about inclusion. Shiver hopes to make visible and mainstream the importance of basic human rights to express gender and sexuality in whichever way an individual sees fit" - Monica Dogra

Music Video Component - Rs. 32,00,000

Set to a song written by Monica Dogra called 'Shivering' from her upcoming album 'Spit', choreographed by Ryan Heffington, concept by Rosie Haber & Monica Dogra, location: Alsisar Palace in Rajasthan.

The imagery in the video traverses a timeline that covers gender-shifting anecdotes. From Ancient Indian epics to the Greek myths of the Seven sisters of the Pleiades to the European fairy tale of Bluebeard where women are punished for their curiosity and disobedience. 

Through dance, movement and imagery we will revisit these stories, bringing them into one time and space to recollect, honour, and subvert the underlying beliefs of what feminine expressions are 'acceptable'  by society.

Documentary & Video Installation Component 

The documentary will gather unique stories around feminine expression from around the globe across gender and culture. (Rs. 38,00,000 raised)

This one of a kind video-installation will use cross-media storytelling to create an experience for visitors of being thrust in the middle of a conversation about gender fluidity and nuances of feminine expression from our subjects around the world. (Rs. 44,00,000 raised)

This will be depicted on multiple screens of various sizes along with the ancient, mythic, magical imagery that makes up the music video.  Our vision is to work with an art director in order to build an immersive performance art installation that highlights the commonalities in expressions of the feminine across gender and sexual identity worldwide. 

Finally, with your support, we will debut the piece with a live performance by our dancers. (Rs. 50,00,000 raised) Following that, a record of the final project and the music video will be available online. 

"The recurring question I have been asked since launching this project is why are you doing this? Why do you care about Queer rights in India? The short answer is that there's a lot of work to be done in bringing about equality and inclusion along gender-neutral lines.  I've seen art catalyze change in the most profound ways.  As an artist, I want to make work that contributes to the opening of perceptions and cultivates empathy and love.  Gender fluidity, sex, love, and the sacred feminine have been themes in all my work for as long as I can remember." - Monica Dogra

"Shiver has the potential to sensitize and transform a very large MTV pop generation fed currently on mainstream normative culture to the nuances of gender and sexuality through representations of the alternative and the marginalised." - Myna

This first of its kind project is being mounted by actress-singer Monica Dogra, filmmaker Rosie Haber, choreographer Ryan Heffington, producers Aliya Curmally and Vikram Nath Gupta and allies like Engendered -  a Transnational Arts and Human Rights Space for Cultural Production based in Delhi), KETTO, and YOU!

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