NALSA launches nationwide youth film competition to spread legal awareness

New Delhi, Mar 1 (PTI) The National Legal Services Authority (NALSA) has launched a nationwide reel and short film competition aimed at strengthening legal awareness and access to justice across the country.

The youth-centric initiative titled 'Frames of Justice', NALSA Youth Reel and Short Film Competition, 2026, was launched on February 13, to mark the National Women's Day and the birth anniversary of Sarojini Naidu, under the leadership of Supreme Court judge and NALSA Executive Chairman Vikram Nath.

The competition has been conceived as a contemporary legal awareness programme as part of NALSA's statutory mandate to promote legal literacy and ensure access to justice, particularly for weaker and marginalised sections of society.

The initiative also underscored the need to strengthen public awareness regarding legal aid mechanisms and institutional support systems.

It further reflects the recommendations of the Parliamentary Standing Committee on Personnel, Public Grievances, Law and Justice advocating innovative, mass-oriented and digital outreach strategies.

Recognising the growing influence of short-form digital storytelling, NALSA said the competition seeks to harness the creativity and digital fluency of law students to generate regionally contextualised and rights-based awareness content on its schemes and broader access-to-justice issues.

The competition is open to undergraduate and postgraduate law students across India and participants may submit one entry either as a reel or vertical video of up to 90 seconds or a short film or an explainer video of up to three minutes.

Entries must be routed through an institutional submission mechanism, from law colleges to District Legal Services Authorities (DLSAs), then to State Legal Services Authorities (SLSAs), and finally to NALSA. Submissions not adhering to this prescribed hierarchy will be disqualified.

NALSA has stipulated that entries in regional languages must carry closed captions or subtitles in English or Hindi. A three-tier evaluation mechanism has been put in place to ensure fairness, quality and national representation.

Zone-wise winners and runner-ups in each category will receive prizes and certificates of recognition, NALSA informed in a press statement issued on Sunday.

The winners will be felicitated by dignitaries at a formal event to be organised by NALSA. Selected entries may also be disseminated through official digital platforms of NALSA and other legal services institutions to further legal awareness outreach.

The competition will accept submissions between February and April 2026, followed by national-level evaluation. The date for the felicitation ceremony will be announced separately.

Through "Frames of Justice", NALSA said it aims to strengthen access to justice through youth-led, technology-enabled initiatives while deepening engagement with the next generation of legal professionals. PTI SKM SKY SKY