BIFFes 2025: ‘Humans in the Loop’ wins Best Indian Film; ‘Mikka Bannada Hakki’ adjudged best Kannada movie

Award-winning Hindi film Humans in the Loop explores AI and humanity, while Shabana Azmi receives Lifetime Achievement Award.

Humans in the Loop, a Hindi film that blends the themes of AI and humanity, won the Best Indian Film honour as the 16th Bengaluru International Film Festival (BIFFes) came to an end on Saturday. Mikka Bannada Hakki, directed by Manohara K., emerged as the best Kannada film of the festival.

Veteran actor Shabana Azmi, who recently completed 50 years in the film industry, was honoured with the Lifetime Achievement Award. Noted actor and theatre personality Arundathi Nag received the award on behalf of Shabana. Organisers said the actor, who won the National Award for her performance in the 1982 film Arth, was held up at an International Women’s Day event in Delhi.

“Shabana is my role model. She is a woman of substance,” said Arundathi.

Festival artistic director N. Vidyashankar said the seven-day festival witnessed a footfall of about one lakh, an increase of about 30-40% from the previous edition.

Humans in the Loop director Aranya Sahay received the award. The film tells the story of an Adivasi woman who begins interacting with AI while working in a data centre in remote Jharkhand. Malayalam thriller Level Cross clinched the second place, while Swaha completed the podium in the Indian Cinema Competition.

Manohara, who started as a child artist in the National Award-winning Railway Children (2016) by Prithvi Konanur, has made his directorial debut with Mikka Bannada Hakki. Prithvi produced the film that was screened at the Shanghai International Film Festival and Children’s and Youth International Film Festival in Iran. Tulu films Pidayi and Daskath were adjudged the second and third best films in the Kannada Cinema Competiton.

Actor Kishore, brand ambassador of the festival, spoke about the need for inclusivity in society. The closing ceremony’s chief guest, Santosh Lad, Labour Minister, urged the Karnataka Chalanachitra Academy to provide more screens for small-scale, content-oriented, and award-winning films.