New Delhi: "Anuja", a New Delhi-set coming-of-age short film that was competing at the Oscars 2025 in the Best Live Action Short category, lost out on the award to Dutch-language movie "I'm Not a Robot". "I'm Not a Robot" is a science fiction film written and directed by Victoria Warmerdam.

“After failing an online CAPTCHA test, Max faces an existential crisis when he believes he might actually be a robot,” read its synopsis. “Anuja”, directed by Adam J Graves and Suchitra Mattai, follows a gifted nine-year-old Anuja, who must make a choice between education and factory work alongside her sister - a decision that will shape both their futures.

It stars Sajda Pathan and Ananya Shanbhag. “Anuja”, currently streaming on Netflix, has two-time Oscar winning producer Guneet Monga and actor Priyanka Chopra Jonas on board as executive producer and Hollywood star-writer Mindy Kaling as producer. It is produced in collaboration with the Salaam Baalak Trust (SBT), a nonprofit founded by

filmmaker Mira Nair’s family in support of street and working children, alongside Shine Global, and Krushan Naik Films.