Recently, I traveled to India for the first time in seven years. I used to visit frequently, going almost every year to see relatives. Upon returning, a wave of memories from my childhood visits came back. Comfort and warmth arose from the smell of freshly fried jalebis from street vendors to the constant sound of car horns at all hours of the day. There also came a sense of unfamiliarity formed from the natural changes that materialize over time. Payal Kapadia was able to perfectly replicate this feeling with All We Imagine As Light (2024) in a way that transcends being unique to a country or individual.
The lives of estranged wife Prabha (Kani Kusruti), besotted young adult Anu (Divya Prabha), and struggling widow Parvaty (Chhaya Kadam) are interlocked with one another by their shared profession as nurses in Mumbai. Each woman carries their own unique internal conflict: Prabha battles the moral implications of being abandoned by her husband, Anu struggles to accept societal criticism of her interfaith relationship, and Parvaty fights to save her home from demolition. Each conflict stems from a state of belonging, a relatable struggle for any migrant living in a claustrophobic city.
The dynamic between Prabha and Anu is complex. Prabha sees Anu as unapologetically true to her desires, a woman who she wishes to be. Anu sees Prabha’s loyalty towards her husband as traditional, which manifests as guilt in the choice of her unorthodox partner. Each projects their internal dilemmas onto one another, yet there is a deep-rooted respect for one another that they wouldn’t care to admit.
Kusruti’s two years of physical theatre studies at L’École Internationale de Théâtre Jacques Lecoq are evident in her portrayal of Prabha. Often, she uses subtle facial gestures and body movements to convey her character’s moral ambiguity effortlessly. Divya Prabha opts for an opposing style of characterisation with Anu wearing her heart on her sleeve, being outspoken of any inner struggles. This juxtaposition of performances creates brilliant chemistry between the two, allowing us to be fully invested in their relationship’s growth.
Often when audiences hear the phrase “Indian film,” they visualize what is known as “Bollywood films” but this isn’t representative of Indian cinema as a whole. All We Imagine As Light gives audiences a new perspective on Indian cinema. All of its narrative intricacies, combined with an almost completely Indian crew, build the most authentic feeling narrative that has been seen this year.
From the opening shot, the viewer is engulfed in the megacity of Mumbai, capturing its essence wholeheartedly through its inhabitants. From the blurred shots of food market store owners selling fruit on the pavement to the infamous rush hour travelers piling onto their trains, it felt as though these shots came straight out of a documentary. Kapadia is no stranger to this format, having directed A Night of Knowing Nothing (2021), so this feels very intentional and clearly sets the tone for how grounded the story is.
The style of All We Imagine As Light takes inspiration from Wong Kar-Wai’s In The Mood For Love (2000) and Chungking Express (1994), focusing on embodying a city through intricate color palettes and neon lighting with a garish blue at the forefront. This is not the only similarity, with profound dialogue centered around hope and longing speckled into the narrative.
When entering into the world of the nurses with a swift draw of the hospital curtains, there is such an immediate intimacy created between them and the audience, feeling utterly transfixed by every minute gesture. Filming on location in Mumbai is no easy feat with the constant bustling streets and small apartment sizes where camera equipment would take up the whole room, but, when successful, it enhances this feeling of intimacy with the added close-ups and stillness.
In the final act, the film shifts from concrete realism, taking a leap of faith akin to a more subdued version of Apichatpong Weerasethakul’s mystical ending in Memoria (2021). This leap may perhaps lose some audience members, but Kapadia trusts that the mysticism is perceived as such as opposed to taking what had transpired at face value.
For a fictional feature-length film debut, Kapadia’s directorial promise excites me. I cannot wait to see her next project and how her films will shape the perception of Indian cinema in Western audiences.
Review Courtesy of Nandita Joshi
Feature Image Credit to Thomas Hakim, Julien Graff via Petit Chaos