‘Anuja’ Director Adam J. Graves On Creating An Empathetic Tale Of Two Sisters In Oscar-Qualifying Short

deadline.com:

In Adam J. Graves and Suchitra Mattai’s Anuja, resilience in the face of hardship is the central heartbeat. The short film, doubling as both a heartwarming tribute to sisterhood and as a social awareness campaign about the effects of unchecked child labor, focuses on Anuja (Sajda Pathan), a young girl who lives with her older sister, Palak (Ananya Shanbhag), in Delhi, India as they live in poverty working long hours at a garment factory.

One day, when a social worker (Gulshan Walia) arrives at the factory to expose the overseer for working Anuja illegally, he proposes that the youngster take part in an exam that will get her into a boarding school to better her chances of escaping her station.

The two sisters are then tasked to raise money for the participation fee while Anuja decides the fate of her future. Fresh off of Academy Award voting precursor wins for best live-action short at the HollyShorts Film Festival in Los Angeles and the grand prize winner at the New York International Short Film Festival, the short film has also garnered support from Indian filmmakers Mindy Kaling and Guneet Monga Kapoor.

Below, Graves talks to Deadline about his inspirations, working with young actors and raising awareness about the plights of child labor. DEADLINE: You have a varied background, from your PhD in philosophy to your various studies within South Asian culture and language.