All We Imagine as Light <img src="https://img.icons8.com/ios-glyphs/20/000000/star--v1.png"/><img src="https://img.icons8.com/ios-glyphs/20/000000/star--v1.png"/><img src="https://img.icons8.com/ios-glyphs/20/000000/star--v1.png"/>

All We Imagine as Light

This meditative exploration of the lives of women in Mumbai has a lot to say about class, religion, poverty, the patriarchy and the strictures of Indian society. This could be a tinderbox of themes but writer/director Payal Kapadia treats the characters and situations with a mild, sympathetic, even phlegmatic touch.

We meet a nurse, Prabha (Kani Kusruti) and her younger colleague and housemate, Anu (Divya Prabha). The two of them have relationships, tangible and nebulous, as well as interactions with people like Parvaty (Chhaya Kadam) a cook at the hospital, and the temporarily placed doctor Manoj (Azees Nedumangad), who yearns after Prabha.

Anu has a secret Muslim boyfriend, Shiaz (Hridhu Haroon) and workplace rumours paint her as a bit of a trollop. Prabha's 'arranged' husband married her and then promptly upped sticks to Germany (the arrival of a German rice cooker is loaded with meaning). The desperation and sadness of the people, especially the women, seeps through the screen. One scene in particular of Prabha and Manoj talking on some playground swings is an achingly frustrating punch in the gut.

The 'light we (they) imagine' seems to be related to lightness of existence, the state of moving through this Mumbai megalopolis in a bit of a trance. These people accept their lot and nobody really makes a fuss about it. You suspect that Anu and Shiaz probably won't find their storybook ending. As the 'Spirit of Mumbai' apparently states, 'Even if you live in the gutter, you’re not allowed to be angry'.

The music was slightly reminiscent of the score for Lost in Translation, minus The Jesus and Mary Chain, the performances are great, especially Kusruti, and the whole film has an earthy feel, in line with Kapadia's documentary background. In saying all this, I wish I liked it more. While I can appreciate its ambition, I found it a bit middling, almost dull at times. Still, it's a contemplative piece of work and confidently measured in its approach to Mumbai city life.

All We Imagine as Light is screening at the Somerville Auditorium UWA from Jan 27 - Feb 2 as part of the Perth Festival.

See also:

I felt a bit discombobulated watching this, similar to how I felt with another Perth Fest film from a few years ago, Davy Chou's Return to Seoul (2022). And as mentioned, there's some shared DNA (for Mumbai, read Tokyo) with Sofia Coppola's Lost in Translation (2003).

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Retrouvez toutes les actualités du cinéma & TV et des films17 February 2025 at 04:10
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