Technology in cinema isn’t just about robots, gadgets, or futuristic worlds anymore. Increasingly, filmmakers are using it as a mirror to reflect our inner lives-our loneliness, our longing, our moral dilemmas, and the fragile, complicated ways we connect with each other. Tech becomes less of a shiny prop and more of an emotional conduit, pushing characters to confront feelings they might otherwise avoid. These five titles don’t treat technology as a mere backdrop; they use it as an emotional catalyst, a trigger that amplifies what it means to be human.
Uttar (ZEE5)
In Uttar, technology isn’t a spectacle, it’s deeply personal. At its core is a strained mother-son relationship shaped by ambition and emotional distance. The son, an AI engineer, excels at coding empathy into machines but struggles to express it at home. As he builds systems designed to simulate understanding, the irony becomes evident: he can program connection, yet cannot practice it. AI becomes both a bridge and a barrier, revealing how far he has drifted from his mother. Ultimately, the film reminds us that no algorithm can replicate the imperfect, layered love between a mother and her son.
Logout (ZEE5)
Logout follows Pratyush Dua, a social‑media influencer whose world revolves around his phone and the flawless persona he maintains online. When his device is stolen by an obsessive fan, his digital identity is hijacked, sending his life into a downward spiral. What begins as a technical inconvenience quickly becomes an emotional unravelling, exposing his deep reliance on validation and control. The film uses technology not just as a plot device but as the very thing that exposes Pratyush’s fears, insecurities, and fractured sense of self. In the larger theme of tech‑driven storytelling, Logout stands out for showing how a single stolen phone can trigger a full‑blown identity crisis-both online and within
Teri Baaton Mein Aisa Uljha Jiya (Prime Video)
This rom-com sci-fi flips the idea of “perfect partner” on its head. What happens when the person you fall for is literally programmed to be ideal? The film plays with humour and romance, but beneath that is a sharp emotional question – Are we falling in love with people, or with how they make us feel about ourselves? Technology here becomes a mirror, exposing modern loneliness, unrealistic relationship expectations, and how easily emotional connection can be engineered.
OK Computer (JioHotstar)
OK Computer takes the crime-thriller route, but its emotional punch comes from moral confusion. When a robot commits murder, who is responsible, the machine, the coder, or society that created it? Beyond the satire and sharp writing, the show raises deeply human questions about empathy in a tech-driven world, justice vs intention, whether emotions can (or should) be programmed. The technology here becomes a catalyst for emotional discomfort, forcing viewers to question their own moral boundaries.
Robot (Netflix)
Robot turns the classic sci-fi trope of “machine gains emotions” into a dramatic, emotional spectacle. When Chitti begins to feel love, jealousy, and rage, the film moves from futuristic fantasy into a cautionary tale.The emotional catalyst isn’t just technology becoming human, it’s humans projecting their emotional chaos onto technology. It’s about the danger of giving machines emotional power without moral grounding and how love, when distorted, can become destructive.
As our real lives become more tech-driven, AI companions, virtual relationships, algorithmic validation, these films and series feel less futuristic and more like emotional mirrors of the present.
Uttar streaming now exclusively on Marathi Zee5