Indian child actor Sunny Pawar at a promotional event in Shanghai for the upcoming film Lion.[Photo provided to China Daily]

When smiling 8-year-old Indian actor Sunny Pawar says xiaxia nong ("thank you" in Shanghai dialect), it strikes a chord.

One of the youngest stars at the ongoing 20th Shanghai International Film Festival, Pawar is in the Chinese city to promote his film Lion, which will be released across China on Thursday.

The Australian film released in the United States in November 2016 and in Australia in January has won more than 30 film awards and nearly 70 nominations, including for the Oscars and Golden Globes.

The movie, based on the nonfiction book A Long Way Home, is about an Indian-Australian man, who uses the internet to find his birth mother.

He got lost in India when he was 5 and was adopted by an Australian couple in Tasmania, who are played by Australian stars Nicole Kidman and David Wenham.

Pawar stars as the child, while Indian-English actor Dev Patel plays his older version.

Pawar says he was selected for the role from more than 2,000 students.

His natural acting impressed the casting director, who believes the young boy has potential.