Godawan, an artisanal single malt whisky brand from India, has released The Godawan: A Story of India’s Endangered Bird – The Great Indian Bustard, a handcrafted stop-motion film combining ceramics, animation and live action to tell the bird’s conservation story.
The film was directed and conceptualized by 22feet and McCann India, in collaboration with Studio Eeksaurus. More than 100 artists and craftspeople contributed to the film, which uses more than 5,200 individual ceramic pieces inspired by Jaipur Blue Pottery.
The Godawan was made over eight months, with each ceramic composition physically made, arranged and photographed by hand.
The film’s music was created by Oscar-winning sound designer Resul Pookutty, Grammy-winning percussionist Taufiq Qureshi and national award winner Rajat Dholakia. The score draws from Rajasthani folk traditions and regional instruments including the Ravanahatha and Morchang.
Godawan’s conservation work around the Great Indian Bustard dates back to 2022. Previous initiatives have included Godawan 100, marking the bird’s population reaching 100; Godawan 173: The Collector’s Edition, which used 173 Jaipur Blue Pottery-inspired bottles to mark a later population milestone; and a World Environment Day projection of the bird’s revival story onto the Qutub Minar.
“Our support for the Godawan’s conservation goes back years, and seeing a purpose we have believed in for so long come to life has been incredible,” said Ruchira Jaitly, Chief Marketing Officer, Diageo India.
“We have commemorated the bird’s journey in many ways over the years, but this is perhaps the most exciting way yet, through a film that brings together conservation, craft, culture and storytelling. At a time when almost anything can be created in seconds, we chose to take the time to make this by hand. That human touch is what this story of conservation needed.”
“The moment I heard the story of the Godawan, I knew nothing could stop us from making it,” said Suresh Eriyat, Co-Founder and Director, Studio Eeksaurus.
“There was a cause, an art form on the edge of disappearing, and a bird almost nobody had seen. We may never make another film quite this way again. The time it took, the ceramics, the filmmaking process, all of it was built for this one story, and it asked for patience at every step, the same patience it takes to protect an egg or rebuild a population.”
“We’ve heard the adage ‘It takes a village to raise a child’. It’s especially true when it comes to conservation of the Godawan,” said Rahul Mathew, Chief Creative Officer, McCann India.
“Which is why, along with supporting the conservation, Diageo is also supporting the artisans of the region and their craft. And we knew that to tell a story about their craft, we had to make sure it was one that used great craft. To tell the story of the Godawan and its conservation using the medium of Jaipur Blue Pottery was painstaking, but also very rewarding. Much like the conservation itself”
