A Documentary About Monogamy Driven by Personal Narrative

Most people involved with social issues and film know Dhruv Dhawan as an acclaimed documentary filmmaker. But in his family, Dhawan is the eldest son, which means that success is more than making a mark in one’s industry. Ever since he graduated, the pressure to marry has mounted. Finding the idea of life-long monogamy difficult, Dhawan decided to explore the basis of marriage and monogamy in the only way he knows how — through film.

The result of this soul-searching is WHYKNOT, a documentary about a man’s personal journey across the foundation of monogamy. The film follows Dhawan as he attends lavish Indian weddings, discusses monogamy and marriage with family members and experts in various fields, and works to navigate the intricacies of his own open relationship with the woman he loves, searching for answers to timeless questions such as: why do we marry and cheat in almost every culture in the world? Why is monogamy so important to a relationship and why does infidelity cause so much grief? Is sexual jealousy innate in humans or nurtured in a world of possessions? Is it possible to separate love and sex and stay in love?

Dhawan is using the crowd-sourcing platform Indiegogo to raise money for the completion of the film.

“This film’s objective is not to advocate for or against monogamy, but to break the silence and provoke thought on an issue which affects so many relationships and families today,” he writes. “[The film crew’s] vision is to empower relationships and to encourage communication within, hoping that one day, infidelity and the containment of our desires may only be a remnant of human history.”