April 26, 2026 at 8:45:00 PM
AFS Cinema
Little Fishies
India | Short
2025 | 20 mins | English, Hindi, Punjabi
Shown as part of the Sunday shorts program
On the day of their father’s funeral ceremony, 13-year-old Raya and her younger sister Mia find themselves engulfed in the absurd and chaotic atmosphere of a grieving Punjabi household. Relatives assign duties, rituals unfold, and Raya feels a widening disconnect between the culturally appropriate way of grieving and her own instinctive way of grappling with the loss. This internal dissonance, coupled with Raya’s desire to shield Mia from the heaviness around them, drives her to hatch a plan to slip away from the stifling ceremony and escape to the beach.
The sisters’ mission gets derailed when their mother catches them and forbids them from leaving — she chides Raya for not supporting her, and insists that they grieve in the "correct” way. Raya pushes back, questioning the contradictions in her mother’s argument, which leans heavily on duty and tradition. This difference in philosophies sets off a heart-wrenching conflict between mother and daughter, each struggling to cope with the same pain.
As Raya and Mia fight against all odds to escape, they are forced to navigate judgment from their own family members, who deem their behavior unfit for the ceremony. Not only must Raya now fight their expectations of what a daughter in mourning must look like, but also reckon with a startlingly heavy question — is there really a right way to grieve?
Restoration Process
Film restoration process
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Photo courtesy: Film Heritage Foundation
About the Artist
Mallika Juneja is a writer and director based in Mumbai, India. After completing her BFA in Filmmaking from NYU’s Tisch School of the Arts, Mallika worked in New York at companies such as A24, Comedy Central, and William Morris Endeavor. In 2021, Mallika’s screenplay won "Best Original Half-Hour Pilot" at NYU's Fusion Film Festival, and in 2024 she was a part of the jury for the same category at the festival.
In Mumbai, Mallika has worked with Tiger Baby and Excel Entertainment; first as a Development Executive, and then as a Director's Assistant. While with Tiger Baby, she was Creative Assistant and then a Director's Assistant on films and series for Netflix and Amazon, along with theatrical releases.
Independently, Mallika has directed music videos, ads, plays, and promotional content for Tiger Baby, Netflix, EO2 EXP, as well as other independent producers and brands. In 2024, she was selected as one of five directors at the Creative Minds of Tomorrow program organized by the International Film Festival of India and the NFDC, where she directed a short film that won two awards at the closing ceremony.
Mallika tends to tell thought-provoking, character driven stories that are gripping and fresh — stories that gently reflect on the contradictions of the time and society we live in, while also being grounded in raw human emotions.
Trailer
For English subtitles, make sure to turn on the YouTube closed captions.
Credits
Director:
Mallika Juneja
Writer:
Mallika Juneja
Producer(s):
Jasmin A Singh
Film Editor:
Sruthy Sukumaran
Myra Singh
Saisha Salvi
Charu Shankar
Suhaas Ahuja