**Executive Summary**
On April 7, 2026, the National Human Rights Commission (NHRC), India, held an award ceremony in New Delhi to felicitate seven winners of its Short Film Competition 2025. The competition, which saw 526 entries across 24 Indian languages, serves as a major outreach initiative to promote human rights through the power of cinema. All winning films will be made available on the Commission’s website for use by public and private institutions to foster social awareness.
**Key Points / Main Content**
**Award Winners and Themes**
* **First Prize:** ‘Rani’ by Sarika Jain (₹2 lakh) explores class divisions and the struggles of female domestic workers.
* **Second Prize:** ‘Meanwhile She..’ by Amal S. (₹1.5 lakh) addresses gender stereotypes, domestic violence, and the burdens of working women.
* **Third Prize:** ‘The Delivery’ by Sai Shashank Tati (₹1 lakh) highlights job insecurity and lack of social protection for gig workers.
* **Special Mentions:** Four films—‘Malati’, ‘Second Chance’, ‘Dusk of Life’, and ‘Bhagyashree’—received ₹50,000 each for addressing tribal education, prison reforms, elderly resilience, and widows' rights.
**Competition Growth and Selection Process**
* Participation increased significantly from 303 entries in 2024 to 526 entries in 2025.
* A total of 438 films qualified for jury evaluation through a rigorous three-stage selection process.
* The competition has evolved since its inception in 2015 into a platform that reflects India’s diversity and increasing public engagement with human rights.
**Institutional Perspectives on Cinema and Advocacy**
* NHRC leadership described audio-visual content as a powerful medium that appeals to the subconscious mind to promote and protect human rights.
* Filmmaking is recognized as a tool for advocacy that can challenge stereotypes, break societal barriers, and inspire action.
* Young filmmakers are viewed as potential "torchbearers" for human rights awareness.
**Impact Analysis**
**Award-Winning Filmmakers**
**Impact**
Filmmakers received financial rewards, trophies, and national recognition for their creative work. The platform allowed them to share insights into their creative processes and highlighted their roles as advocates for marginalized lives.
**Action Required**
Filmmakers are encouraged to continue using creative platforms to highlight social concerns and promote human rights awareness.
**Government Bodies, Academic Institutions, and Civil Society**
**Impact**
These stakeholders gain access to high-quality, diverse audio-visual resources to support their educational and advocacy missions.
**Action Required**
Utilize the awarded films, which will be hosted on the NHRC website, as tools to promote human rights awareness within their respective fields.
**The National Human Rights Commission (NHRC)**
**Impact**
The commission successfully expanded its outreach and reinforced its national character by attracting entries in 24 different languages.
**Action Required**
The Commission must make the awarded films available on its official website for public and institutional access.
Key Entities Referenced
National Human Rights Commission (NHRC): The primary statutory body responsible for organizing the competition and promoting human rights awareness and protection in India.
Human Rights Short Film Competition: An annual outreach initiative and program established by the NHRC in 2015 to encourage the use of cinema as a medium for highlighting social concerns and human rights.
Justice V. Ramasubramanian: The Chairperson of the National Human Rights Commission who presided over the 2025 award ceremony and emphasized the impact of audio-visual content on human rights.
National Human Rights Commission
NHRC, India presents awards to the seven
winners of its human rights Short Film
Competition 2025
NHRC Chairperson, Justice V. Ramasubramanian says human
rights films reflect India’s diversity
Member, Justice (Dr.) Bidyut Ranjan Sarangi underscores
cinema’s role in promoting and protecting human rights
Member, Smt. Vijaya Bharathi Sayani says young filmmakers
have the potential to become torchbearers of human rights
awareness
Secretary General, Shri Bharat Lal traces NHRC's Short Film
Competition evolving as a major outreach initiative for
promoting human rights
Posted On: 07 APR 2026 8:25PM by PIB Delhi
The National Human Rights Commission (NHRC) today organised an award ceremony at its premises in
New Delhi to felicitate the seven winners of its human rights Short Film Competition 2025. Addressing
the gathering, NHRC, India Chairperson, Justice V. Ramasubramanian congratulated the winners and
lauded their passion for filmmaking. He highlighted the impact of audio-visual content, describing it as a
powerful medium that appeals to the subconscious mind. Noting that entries were received in 24 Indian
languages from across the country, he said that the diversity of films reflected the Commission’s national
character. NHRC Members, Justice (Dr.) Bidyut Ranjan Sarangi and Smt. Vijaya Bharathi Sayani,
Secretary General, Shri Bharat Lal, Director General (Investigation) Smt. Anupama Nilekar Chandra and
other senior officers were present.Justice Ramasubramanian noted that since its inception in 2015, the competition has seen growing
participation each year, reflecting increasing public engagement with human rights issues. He expressed
optimism that the trend would continue, with more people using creative platforms to highlight social
concerns.
In his remarks, NHRC Member, Justice (Dr.) Bidyut Ranjan Sarangi emphasised that all seven winning
films conveyed distinct messages and underscored cinema’s role in promoting and protecting human
rights. He particularly praised the documentary ‘The Dusk of Life’ and the short film ‘Rani’ for their
sensitive portrayal of marginalised lives.NHRC Member, Smt. Vijaya Bharathi Sayani described filmmaking as a powerful tool for advocacy,
saying the films challenge stereotypes, break societal barriers and inspire action. She added that young
filmmakers have the potential to become torchbearers of human rights awareness.
Earlier, Secretary General, Shri Bharat Lal provided an overview of the competition’s growth. He said that
while 303 entries were received in 2024, the number rose to 526 in 2025, of which 438 qualified for jury
evaluation through a rigorous three-stage selection process. He said that the competition has evolved as a
major outreach initiative for promoting human rights.
The winners were announced by Joint Secretary, Smt. Saidingpuii Chhakchhuak. The first prize of Rs 2
lakh, along with a trophy and certificate, was awarded to the film ‘Rani’ by Ms. Sarika Jain. The Hindi
film with subtitles in English explores class divisions and the struggles of women domestic workers.The second prize of Rs 1.5 lakh went to ‘Meanwhile She..’ by Shri Amal S., a film in Malayalam with
subtitles in English, which addresses the disproportionate burdens faced by working women amid gender
stereotypes and domestic violence.
The third prize of Rs 1 lakh was awarded to ‘The Delivery’ by Sai Shashank Tati from Tamil Nadu. The
Tamil film highlights the challenges faced by gig workers, including job insecurity and lack of social
protection.
Four films received a Special Mention, each carrying a cash award of Rs 50,000: ‘Malati’ by Falguni
Bhakta, ‘Second Chance’ by Ravi Karnwal, ‘Dusk of Life’ by Damodar D. Pawar and ‘Bhagyashree’ by
Manoj AppasoJanwekar. These films addressed themes ranging from tribal education and prison reforms
to elderly resilience and the rights of widows in rural India.
The award-winning filmmakers also shared insights into their creative process during the event. All the
awarded films will be made available on the Commission’s website and can be used by government
bodies, academic institutions and civil society organisations to promote human rights awareness.
***
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