Common Sense Media Review
By Barbara Shulgasser-Parker
,
based on child development research. How do we rate?
Short film about orphan in India has message of hope.
Parents Need to Know
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Anuja
What's the Story?
ANUJA (Sajda Pathan) is 9 years old, pretending to be 14 so that she can legally work in a New Delhi sweatshop. She and her older sister, Palak (Ananya Shanbhag), struggle to make ends meet, so when a teacher who recognizes Anuja's intellectual gift wants her to take an entrance exam for a boarding school to ultimately lift the two out of poverty, they must come up with a scheme to earn the paltry entrance fee. After Anuja's boss learns she is mathematically gifted, he doesn't want to lose her as a worker, so he tempts Anuja with a higher paying accounting job. Then he schedules the start of that better job at the same time as the entrance exam. On the morning of the exam, Anuja must choose: take the test, or do the books for the boss to earn enough to make her big sister's life easier. Which does she choose?
Is It Any Good?
Anuja is a slender short film that takes great advantage of the charm and presence of its actors. Both are believable and lovely young performers who persuade us they are sisters who truly care about each other. When faced with the choice between taking a test that will send her to a boarding school for gifted students and accepting the offer of her sweatshop boss to do figures for him for extra money, Anuja may make a decision, but the filmmakers don't share it with us, and the viewer has to wonder why not? There is no good dramatic reason for leaving us hanging, except to signal that the filmmakers couldn't work out what happens next.
Instead, they leave us to do their work. Also, the movie begins with an allegory about a mongoose punished for a murder it did not commit. The rest of the story never offers a clue as to the connection to that allegory, another narrative lapse.
Talk to Your Kids About ...
Families can talk about the relationship between the sisters. They seem close and caring. Does the movie make you wonder about their backstory and how they came to live without parents?
Who do you think should care for children without parents?
What decision do you think Anuja made? Why?
Do you have more questions about the plight of working children? Take a look at the discussion guide for Anuja and discuss the provided resources.
Movie Details
- On DVD or streaming : January 31, 2025
- Cast : Sajda Pathan , Ananya Shanbhag
- Director : Adam J. Graves
- Inclusion Information : Female Movie Actor(s) , Indian/South Asian Movie Actor(s)
- Studio : Shine Global
- Genre : Drama
- Run time : 22 minutes
- MPAA rating :
- Last updated : May 14, 2025
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