At India’s elite Indian Institutes of Technology (IIT), a “Cat” is someone who aces everything. These engineering schools have produced the CEOs of Google, Microsoft, IBM, and other tech giants. In the documentary TECHNOCATS, director Gautam Sonti, an IIT alumnus himself, explores the cost and meaning of excellence, the reality behind the rankings, and the quiet resilience of young minds navigating one of India’s most intense institutions.

Over seven years, Sonti follows seven students from seven parts of India, beginning with their first semester and continuing into the third year of their careers. What emerges is a portrait of Indian society and its educational institutions that push young people to the brink. Interwoven with their journeys are four of the filmmaker’s classmates from 35 years ago, creating an intergenerational dialogue about the relentless pursuit of material success.

Competing against one million applicants, the seven students gain admission to IIT, but are soon disillusioned. Insightful and compassionate, TECHNOCATS depicts young adults forced to grapple with themselves and family expectations, and to confront a fiercely competitive world.