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Fantasia International Film Festival is great at showcasing films telling interesting stories from diverse perspectives. This year’s lineup includes the feature film debut of writer and director Bishal Dutta, bringing to life a story conceived with Ashish Mehta. It Lives Inside follows an Indian-American teen as she tries to hide her cultural identity in an effort to better fit in at school. After a falling out with a former friend, a demonic entity is unleashed that threatens to alienate the teen from everyone and everything she holds dear.

It Lives Inside manages to both tell a compelling story of what life can be like for children of immigrants while also simply being a terrifying tale of supernatural horrors. When the audience first meets the protagonist, Samidha (who prefers to go by Sam), it’s immediately clear that she is struggling. At home, she refuses to speak Hindi and only passively participates in the traditions her mother so strongly encourages. At school, Sam does her best to to fit in with her classmates by trying to hide her Indian heritage. She tries so hard to separate herself from her Indian-American identity that she even stopped spending time with her best friend, Tamira, who is also Indian-American. It paints a sad picture of what life is like as a teen whose parents are Indian immigrants. By shunning her family’s culture in order to be accepted by her white peers, she alienates herself from her family, but she can never completely hide her heritage, so she can also never fully assimilate. In trying to fit in, Sam further isolates herself into a rather lonely existence.

As if Sam’s story wasn’t already tragic and fascination, the introduction of a supernatural element helps to highlight the themes of isolation and loneliness. A sinister, demonic entity from the Hindu religion attaches itself to Sam. This demon works to “tenderize” its victims by separating them from their loved ones, increasing their feelings of desolation, depression, and even madness, until the creature is ready to devour the victim’s soul. It Lives Inside indicates this evil first arrived with a recent teenage immigrant from India before it passed to Tamira, then finally to Sam. The demon ends up acting as a sort of metaphor for the experience of these Indian-American teens. They are easy prey for the demon because they already have these feelings of not fitting in with their American peers, and as the only Indian teens in the area, they have the burden of this cultural heritage no one else could understand.

It Lives Inside has a wonderful cast delivering powerful performances. Megan Suri (Missing, Never Have I Ever) stars as Sam. As with most teens, Sam just wants to be accepted by her classmates and not seen as the token Indian girl. Even in the moments when Sam is being cruel to Tamira, Suri makes the character empathetic because most teens went through that high school experience when they wanted nothing to do with anything that made them different, even if that means pushing away the people you once called friends. As the film progresses, Suri draws the audience in with how she conveys her character’s desperation and determination. Mohana Krishnan (I Am Frankie) gives a compelling performance as Tamira. From the moment Tamira is introduced, Krishnan makes it apparent Tamira is barely hanging on to her sanity as she battles the demon all alone. Other standouts are Neeru Bajwa (Jatt & Juliet) as Sam’s mother, Poorna, and Betty Gabriel (Get Out) as Sam and Tamira’s teacher, Joyce.

Many of the visuals in It Lives Inside look fantastic and inject terror right into the eyes of the audience. Throughout most of the film, the demon is invisible. This means there is a lot of use of negative space, interesting angles, and tricks of light, as well as incredible sound design to let the audience know there is an evil presence lurking about. The only real visuals early on are disturbing drawings depicting the demon. It creates the sense that the demon is always there, even if we can’t see the danger, adding to the buildup of suspense throughout the film. As the frightful climax arrives, the audience finally gets to see the demon in all its glory. The mostly practical creature design, with some CGI enhancements, is a horrifying sight to behold and is very well executed.

It Lives Inside is a terrifying story deftly using a demonic entity to convey the isolating struggles of an Indian-American teenager trying to find where they belong. While Dutta brings to life a story very much rooted in Indian and Hindu cultural identity, it is one many children of immigrants will likely relate to. The film sends an important message, while also being both entertaining and frightening. With wonderful performances driving the plot forward, and visuals to send chills up your spine, It Lives Inside is sure to be a horror hit.

OVERALL RATING: 8.5/10