ALL WE IMAGINE AS LIGHT is a delight. Not in some frivolous, funny way, but in a deep and meaningful way, not behoven to heaviness but to the light in the darkness of the lives, the textures and contrasts of contemporary, working-class Mumbai.
A tale of two nurses, flatmates who also work together in a city hospital, head nurse Prabha (Kani Kusruti) and junior carer, Anu (Divya Prabha)
ALL WE IMAGINE AS LIGHT is a sublime celebration of the simple splendour of life, a story that quietly seeps into your soul.
ALL WE IMAGINE AS LIGHT is about the subtle heroics of lives facing their hurdles. Prabha’s husband took off to Germany shortly after their arranged marriage and as the years go by she hears less and less from him.
Anu is having a clandestine affair with a Muslim boy, which she must keep secret from her strict Hindu family. Prabha worries that Anu’s reputation is at stake with her carefree, scandalous behaviour.
Add to this mix of big sister protege scenario, co-worker, and hospital cook Parvaty (Chhaya Kadam),finds herself dealing with a sudden eviction from her apartment.
ALL WE IMAGINE AS LIGHT is all about connection and heartache, hope and disappointment, shot against the contrasting landscapes of a bustling metropolis and the open air tranquillity of a coastal village.
Another contrasting feature is the dreamlike, nudging magic realism that surfaces within the largely lyrical naturalism of the film. It is an astonishing achievement by writer director Payal Kapadia and her main cast, the luminous Kani Kusruti, the effervescent Divya Prabha and the pragmatic, feisty Chhjaya Kadam.
Supplemented by an incandescent score by Topshe, ALL WE IMAGINE AS LIGHT re imagines exercises in the exploration of the inner lives and delivers a truly splendid cinematic experience.
