As many as 25 students of Class VIII and IX of Ryan International School shot and directed the film. The film is of around 40-45 minutes duration.

“It took us four days to shoot the film and another three to edit it. We shot at several places in the city: roads, houses and jhuggis,” says Parul Malhotra, a Class IX student, who directed the film.

The cast consists entirely of amateur artists who were selected through auditions. “We chose 15 from out of the 100-odd people who turned up for the auditions. The cast comprised housewives, retired officials and personnel. They did a good job,” says Parul.

“The film is a part of a three-week AIDS awareness campaign workshop. For the first two weeks, children were trained in handling the camera, scripting, lighting and sound,” says Utkash Marwah, Cultural and Creative Director of Ryan Foundation.

Shishir Uniyal, who is one of the production heads of the film, said, “I’m really happy with the children’s performance. They deserve to be lauded”.

The film is centred on a girl who contracts HIV from her mother. The protagonist’s role has been played by Mankiat, a Class V student of the school.

Parul says the venture has opened another avenue for her. “I want to be an architect or an engineer. Now I have another option open: film direction”.

Earlier, Ryan International School, Bangalore had also made a film on AIDS. “We saw the film, surfed all AIDS-related sites on the internet to understand the theme of the film,” says another student of the school.