Priyanka Chopra backs Oscar-shortlisted film Anuja as executive producer
Priyanka Chopra Jonas has come on board Anuja, a film shortlisted for the Oscars 2025. It is made by the husband-wife team Adam J. Graves (director) and Suchitra Mattai (producer). This powerful short follows Anuja, a precocious nine-year-old orphan who works in a back-alley garment factory alongside her older sister Palak when she is suddenly faced with a rare opportunity that will determine the fate of her future and family. The film won the Oscar-qualifying live-action short award at the 2024 HollyShorts Film Festival and has been shortlisted for the 2025 Oscars. Priyanka Chopra has joined the team as an executive producer.
Previously, she also served as an executive producer of the Oscar-nominated and award-winning feature documentary To Kill A Tiger, and Netflix’s Oscar-nominated film The White Tiger.
The actress shared, “This beautiful film shines a spotlight on a subject that affects millions of children around the world, who are faced with the impossible decision between a future they cannot yet see and the immediate realities of their present. Anjua is a poignant, thought-provoking piece that makes us reflect deeply on the power of choices and how they shape the course of our lives. I am immensely proud to be associated with such a phenomenal and impactful project.”
Anuja was produced in partnership with the Salaam Baalak Trust (SBT), a non-profit organisation that supports street and working children, SHINE GLOBAL, the production company behind Emmy and Academy Award-winning films such as War/Dance (2007) and Inocente (2012), and Krushan Naik Films. Adding authenticity to the narrative, lead actress Sajda Pathan draws from her own experiences of surviving on the streets of old Delhi, along with her sister, before recently finding a home with the Salaam Baalak Trust.
Adam J. Graves (Writer/Director) wrote, directed and produced the award-winning short film Cycle Vérité (2021) and produced and edited the documentary short The Other Side of the Sun (2024). He is married to the acclaimed visual artist Suchitra Mattai (producer of Anuja).
