If I Could Tell You
Director: Niharika Popli Starring: Surbhi Taneja, Charu Narang, Sreelekshmi, Aishwarya Ayushmaan, Lauren Robinson, Hardeep Singh Run time: 69 mins | Recommended Certificate: 12A Language: Indian Sign Language (ISL), English, Hindi with English subtitles | Year: 2024 | Country: India
This insightful documentary follows two friends whose lives have been shaped by Indian Sign Language (ISL) in markedly different ways: a Deaf woman raised in a hearing family, and her hearing friend who grew up as a Child of Deaf Adults (CODA). Through intimate conversations and reflections from Deaf and queer communities, the film explores how visual language can reshape our understanding of autonomy, care, identity, and belonging. Interwoven with evocative animation by artist Pakhi Sen, it challenges conventional notions of deafness, communication, and listening. In a landmark first for Indian cinema, the film also features an original ISL poem by a Deaf poet.
Director
Niharika Popli
Niharika is a filmmaker, editor and co-founder of Dilmaya Films. She began filmmaking while documenting the life and music of Hindustani classical vocalist, Ustad Abdul Rashid Khan. Over time, her work has evolved into a sustained engagement with the questions of belonging, identity and language.
Her debut documentary, Rasan Piya, received the Tareque Masud Award at Film Southasia and a Special Mention at the Mumbai International Film Festival. Her films have screened internationally at festivals, universities, and museums. Recent work includes editing Vani Subramanian's
Cinema Pe Cinema, which premiered at the International Film Festival Rotterdam in 2025.
She is currently producing and editing Pushpa Rawat's Sita's Awakening and developing Duniya Sabki, a feature documentary on migration and the idea of home in Delhi, a city shaped by generations of migrants and refugees, including her own family.
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