September 2024

Dear Visitor,

Feel your breath and your heartbeat. The music of life pulses within you, and Jhaptal A Documentary In 10 Beats invites you to experience this music more fully!

Synopsis

Fifteen years in the making, Jhaptal is a profoundly heartfelt look at the living tradition of Indian Classical Music. Featuring exclusive interviews and intimate moments with many luminary musicians, current and historical — including Sultan Khan, Hariprasad Chaurasia, Amjad Ali Khan, Anuradha Pal, and more — Jhaptal weaves a vibrant sonic tapestry that illuminates the improvisational beauty of the world’s most sophisticated oral tradition of music. Offering a friendly and accessible introduction to the principles of Raga and Tala, the foundation of Indian Classical Music, Jhaptal blends education with entertainment through personal stories from musicians and their candid musical insights.

Unlike other films on this topic, Jhaptal is uniquely told through the eyes of a young American female filmmaker, offering a cross-cultural, intergenerational, and gender-sensitive perspective.

Filmmaker Background

As the director, producer, and cinematographer, I’m proud to have single-handedly conducted over 100 interviews with renowned Indian classical musicians and their disciples across 3 continents — a significant feat for any filmmaker, especially a foreign, female, first-time filmmaker. Prior to Jhaptal, I worked with two Academy Award winning directors, as a production assistant for Oliver Stone and as a camera production assistant for Sydney Pollack. I also worked as an additional videographer on the Sundance award-winning documentary The Corporation. After graduating from the film program at NYU TISCH, I worked for many years as a freelance video producer for the promotion of Indo-American arts and media in NYC.

In 2009, while traveling in India to meet artists for Jhaptal, I experienced sexual battery in an ashram in Mumbai. Healing this trauma gradually caused me to pause my documentary work and step away from filmmaking for over a decade. I became a yoga teacher, which ultimately deepened my connection with Indian philosophy and culture and has given me greater insight into the underlying values of Indian Classical Music. This healing journey has inspired me to return to Jhaptal, and to filmmaking, to have more musical conversations and share stories that amplify cross-cultural understanding and appreciation.

Current Stage

Currently in post-production, Jhaptal needs your support.

You can join us in this creative renaissance in many ways, but most readily by making a donation!

For further opportunities to engage and support this project, please be in touch by email.

Thank you,
Sandi H.

Yoga teacher and Filmmaker, Jhaptal A Documentary In 10 Beats