Studio Productions
At Civic Studios, we develop and fund long form entertainment that is engaging and empowering. Our formats vary across films, web series, and docuseries. We are building a global community of like-minded creators and storytellers seeking to create social impact through media.
Our Production Process
Vakeel Babu
Format – Short film
Genre – Drama
Writer – Kanishka, Suyash Barve
Director – Sumit Purohit
Starring – Abhishek Banerjee, Loveleen Mishra, Bhamini Oza
Project stage – Released in 2021. Click to watch on Amazon miniTV (accessible on the Amazon shopping app in India)
About – A young lawyer, distracted with chasing success through his digital video channel, is approached online by an anonymous female victim with a powerful abuser. Will he do justice to the challenge? Our short film ‘Vakeel Babu’ traces the journey of Shiraz Hassan as he rediscovers his purpose in the justice system.
Key theme(s) – Gender sensitivity in legal system, gender- based violence
Ye Saali Naukri
Format – Web-series
Genre – Drama
Writers – Somnath Karmakar, Kaviraj Singh
Director – Kaviraj Singh
Starring – Sanyam Sharma, Mugdha Agrawal
Project Stage – Released in 2022. Click to watch on MX Player (link) and Pocket Change YouTube
About – A coming-of-age story of a young aspirant in small town India, who faces immense odds for securing a simple government job. The four episode series revolves around Raviranjan, a young, laid back government job aspirant, who loses love, respect and more at the hands of the competitive exam system of India. Will Ravi overcome these obstacles to be a winning story, or will he, like thousands of other students, become a victim of the system?
Key Theme(s) – Unemployment, government jobs
Family Aaj Kal
Format – Web-series
Genre – Dramedy
Writer – Manoj Kalwani
Director – Parikshit Joshi
Starring – Apoorva Arora, Sonali Sachdev, Nitesh Pandey, Masood Akhtar, Aakarshan Singh, Prakhar Singh
Project Stage – Releasing in 2023
About – The Kashyaps think they are an open-minded family. With their own past as an interfaith couple, the parents would want their kids to marry anyone of their own choice. But when their daughter, Varsha, reveals she is dating a cab driver, they face a dilemma. Now is no work really too small? And will they be able to look past their biases to give a chance to Varsha’s relationship? Family Aaj Kal is a heartwarming, wholesome journey of family bonding, acceptance, and choice.
Key Theme(s) – Class bias, dignity of labour, freedom to choose partner
Schirkoa
Format – Animation Feature Film
Genre – Fantasy
Writer – Ishan Shukla
Director – Ishan Shukla
Starring – Golshifteh Farahani, Asia Argento, Gaspar Noé, Lav Diaz, Shekhar Kapur, Soko, Denzil Smith, Tibu Fortes, Shahbaz Sarwar (voices)
Project Stage – Releasing in 2023
About – In a sophisticated, near-perfect society called ‘Schirkoa’, citizens live with paper bags on heads to dissolve differences. Tensions rise when the whispers of a mythical land without the bags start to float, and a fresh council member sparks an accidental revolution.
Key theme(s) – Freedom vs suppression, free will vs autocracy
March Against Time
Format – Fiction web-series
Genre – Drama
Writer – Bhavani Iyer
Project stage – In development
About – A timeless saga on women’s fight for freedom, love, and justice. Through the journey of a laidback millennial protagonist, the story will unpack the harsh truths of frayed family ties, domestic abuse, and patriarchy in an Indian middle class context. We will also go further to ask how the past of the gender rights movement of India can help us respond to these lived experiences of the present, and build a stronger future.
Key theme – Gender rights movement, family, patriarchy
A Rainbow for India
Format – Fiction web-series
Genre – Romance / Drama
Project stage – In development
About – 6th September 2018 marked an important milestone in the history of queer rights in India. The Supreme Court of India unanimously ruled that Section 377 was unconstitutional in criminalizing sex between consenting adults. But who were the people behind this movement- the lawyers, litigants, NGOs, and the citizens? What drove this collective to a historic victory, and what were the factions exposed along the way? This story will unpack the Indian queer movement’s journey to repeal the draconian Section 377, and reflect on where we go from here in the average queer Indian’s fight for acceptance, dignity, and love.
Key theme – Queer rights movement, section 377
Do Boond: India v/s Polio
Format – Feature Film
Genre – Drama
Project stage – In Development
About – Until early 1990s India was hyperendemic for polio, with an average of 500 to 1000 children getting paralyzed daily. India constituted over 60% of all global polio cases as recently as 2009. The last case of polio was recorded on January 13, 2011. India has been polio free since then. How did India eradicate polio? And what went into this massive feat? This story sheds light on the strong commitment of the government, seamless partnership comprising Rotary clubs, WHO and Unicef, and above all the tireless hard work of millions of front-line workers – vaccinators, social mobilisers and community and health workers.
Key theme – Polio eradication, public health
