All We Imagine as Light (2024): review

Payal Kapadia's All We Imagine as Light is an affecting drama that draws us into Mumbai's night-time world. Following her documentary A Night of Knowing Nothing, her first fiction feature tells a story of longing, social constraints and the strength of women trying to find their way through personal and social pressures.

Prabha’s unexpected gift

Three women's loosely connected stories form the centre of the film. Prabha, played by Kani Kusruti, is a nurse in an arranged marriage. Her husband has moved to Germany and almost entirely stopped contacting her. The unexpected arrival of a gift throws her into emotional confusion and makes her reconsider her life and desires.

Anu’s love across boundaries

Anu, played by Divya Prabha, is also a nurse. She has fallen in love with Shiaz, a Muslim man, and their relationship faces the prejudices and taboos surrounding them. Her youthful joy comes into conflict with the restrictions placed on that love.

Parvaty’s threatened home

Parvaty, played by Chhaya Kadam, is an older widow whose neighbourhood faces gentrification. She struggles to retain her home despite an uncertain future. Her experience stands for the loss of community and history in a rapidly changing city.

Solidarity as a refuge

Kapadia creates an intimate portrait of women's lives within a patriarchal society. Their solidarity becomes an anchor and a refuge, one of the film's strongest ideas. Connection allows them to cross social and cultural boundaries and gives them strength to face their difficulties.

Mumbai at night

Mumbai at night is much more than a backdrop. The visually striking cinematography makes the city a quiet observer and participant in the story. Its pulsing lights can also feel oppressive, reinforcing the characters' isolation. Their solitary journeys through dark streets carry symbolism and poetry.

Three outstanding performances

The performances are outstanding. Kani Kusruti conveys Prabha's longing for independence alongside the obligations and family expectations that constrain her. Divya Prabha makes Anu's youthful hope and the pain of a forbidden relationship convincing. Chhaya Kadam gives Parvaty a quiet but unyielding strength that makes her determination tangible.

Music for an inner world

The music complements the visual storytelling beautifully. The melancholy piano pieces evoke the characters' inner lives and intensify the emotions without overwhelming them. Music and images together make the film's atmosphere particularly affecting.

Quietness and intimacy

All We Imagine as Light excels through its quietness and intimacy. Kapadia addresses patriarchy, gentrification and cultural constraints subtly but forcefully. The film asks us to take time with its characters' feelings and appreciate their quieter moments of solidarity.

A film that asks for patience

That approach demands patience and a willingness to engage with the softer tones of the storytelling. Some viewers may find its slow development tiring. Yet this is also where its strength lies: it asks us to look deeper and pay attention to the fine details of the story.

Verdict

Kapadia proves herself a strong voice in fiction as well as documentary filmmaking. All We Imagine as Light is moving, powerful and tender, a film that continues to resonate after it ends.