Beyond Ratings(2024)
Three women share their experience of navigating the app-world in the metro city. The sharings reveal gendered battles as platform workers and the tiresome reality of gig-workers' identities against the absent bosses, masked behind their apps. Filmed in the streets of New Delhi, the protagonists share about their door-to-door gigs, the surveillance at their workplaces and the absence of accountability in the urban landscape.
Quick Facts
- Theatrical Release
- 29 February 2024
- Director
- Aprajita Gupta
- Language
- Hindi
- Runtime
- 37m
Storyline
Three women in Delhi talk about working for app-based delivery and service jobs. They describe the challenges of being female gig workers, dealing with constant digital surveillance, and having no real contact with the companies that employ them. Their stories highlight the tiring reality of this work in a modern city.
“Three women. Endless deliveries. No one to answer to.”
Film Details
Parental Guide
Vibe & Tags
Cast & Crew
Trivia
- The film was shot entirely on location in Delhi, using handheld cameras to capture the raw, unfiltered reality of the gig workers' daily lives.
- Director Aprajita Gupta spent over a year building trust with the three women protagonists before filming began to ensure authentic storytelling.
- The documentary's title, 'Beyond Ratings', directly critiques the five-star rating system used by apps to control and evaluate gig workers.
- One protagonist, a delivery worker, revealed she often disguises her gender by using a male name on the app to avoid harassment.
- The film was partially funded through a grant from a non-profit organization focused on digital rights and labor justice in India.
- A key scene shows a worker's phone battery dying mid-gig, highlighting the constant pressure and personal cost of staying 'always on' for the apps.
- The sound design intentionally mixes app notification sounds with Delhi's street noise to create a sense of relentless digital and physical surveillance.