All We Imagine as Light

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All We Imagine as Light

Released Nov 15, 2024

1h 58m

Drama

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154 Reviews

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250+ Ratings

The light, the lives, and the textures of contemporary, working-class Mumbai are explored and celebrated by writer/director Payal Kapadia, who won the Grand Prize at this year's Cannes Film Festival for her revelatory fiction feature debut. Centering on two roommates who also work together in a city hospital--head nurse Prabha (Kani Kusruti) and recent hire Anu (Divya Prabha)--plus their coworker, cook Parvaty (Chhaya Kadam), Kapadia's film alights on moments of connection and heartache, hope and disappointment. Prabha, her husband from an arranged marriage living in faraway Germany, is courted by a doctor at her hospital; Anu carries on a romance with a Muslim man, which she must keep a secret from her strict Hindu family; Parvaty finds herself dealing with a sudden eviction from her apartment. Kapadia captures the bustle of the metropolis and the open-air tranquility of a seaside village with equal radiance, articulated by her superb actresses and by the camera with a lyrical naturalism that occasionally drifts into dreamlike incandescence. All We Imagine as Light is a soulful study of the transformative power of friendship and sisterhood, in all its complexities and richness.

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Critics Consensus

Capturing the here and now of modern India with the spontaneity of a candid photograph, All We Imagine as Light is a lustrous achievement that announces Payal Kapadia as an essential filmmaker.

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Adam Nayman

Toronto Star

It takes an awful lot of skill to make cinema feel this effortless.

Rated: 4/4

Jun 17, 2025

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Odie Henderson

Boston Globe

This is a very patient movie, filled with equally patient performances, lyrical camerawork and some stunning images of its characters residing within the frame. Kapadia’s screenplay builds fleshed out characters, even in the supporting roles.

Rated: 3.5/4

Jan 29, 2025

Full Review

Peter Travers

ABC News

In her first fiction feature, documentarian Payal Kapadia brings a poetic profundity to this cinematic spellbinder about female sisterhood in a big city (Mumbai) full of societal, economic and political pressures that can force out intimacy and dreams

Jan 10, 2025

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Jay Liu

The Asian Cut

Quite the announcement to the stage of international cinema.

Rated: 4/5

Jul 31, 2025

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Gisela Savdie

El Heraldo

In times when reality asserts itself harshly, Kapadia reminds us that dreaming is also a form of resistance [Full review in Spanish]

Jul 30, 2025

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Jinal Bhatt

The Mary Sue

Payal Kapadia captures Mumbai in all its flawed beauty and perceives it through a piercing female gaze. There’s a casual sensuousness and slow poetry to the people and the landscapes in her film. And most of all, it feels deeply intimate.

Jul 30, 2025

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Dave D

very slow moving with some great cinematography good acting some farrowing and sweet moments

Rated 3 out of 5 stars

01/13/25

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jeffrey s

beautiful shot film with some heartwarming performances, just felt the story got a little lost at the end.

Rated 3.5 out of 5 stars

01/01/25

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Eva

Lovely tale of the intertwined lives of three women in Mumbai. I would make a point of seeing it if you can.

Rated 5 out of 5 stars

12/12/24

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Roy J

Wasn't expecting half the movie to be about Mumbai then suddenly shift to a sea-side village. Excellent performances and direction. India should have submitted this for the Oscars

Rated 5 out of 5 stars

12/04/24

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Laldee

Beautiful atmospheric film about love and female friendship.

Rated 5 out of 5 stars

11/25/24

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devdutt

well acted, good use of colour palette, some funny and poetic moments. seemingly gratuitous exposure of the body that felt awkward and contrived, slow meandering pace that seemed unnecessary. imagination as the light in a dark world is a character in the film. if youre into lingering meaningful glances this film is for you.

Rated 3.5 out of 5 stars

11/24/24

Full Review

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Payal Kapadia

Director

Kani Kusruti

Actor

Divya Prabha

Actor

Chhaya Kadam

Actor

Hridhu Haroon

Actor

Payal Kapadia

Screenwriter

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All We Imagine as Light: Trailer 1

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Synopsis

The light, the lives, and the textures of contemporary, working-class Mumbai are explored and celebrated by writer/director Payal Kapadia, who won the Grand Prize at this year's Cannes Film Festival for her revelatory fiction feature debut. Centering on two roommates who also work together in a city hospital--head nurse Prabha (Kani Kusruti) and recent hire Anu (Divya Prabha)--plus their coworker, cook Parvaty (Chhaya Kadam), Kapadia's film alights on moments of connection and heartache, hope and disappointment. Prabha, her husband from an arranged marriage living in faraway Germany, is courted by a doctor at her hospital; Anu carries on a romance with a Muslim man, which she must keep a secret from her strict Hindu family; Parvaty finds herself dealing with a sudden eviction from her apartment. Kapadia captures the bustle of the metropolis and the open-air tranquility of a seaside village with equal radiance, articulated by her superb actresses and by the camera with a lyrical naturalism that occasionally drifts into dreamlike incandescence. All We Imagine as Light is a soulful study of the transformative power of friendship and sisterhood, in all its complexities and richness.

Director: Payal Kapadia
Screenwriter: Payal Kapadia
Distributor: Sideshow / Janus Films
Production Co: Chalk and Cheese, Another Birth, arte France Cinéma, Les Films Fauves, Pulpa Film, BALDR Film, Petit Chaos
Genre: Drama
Original Language: Malayalam
Release Date (Theaters): Nov 15, 2024, Limited
Release Date (Streaming): Feb 4, 2025
Box Office (Gross USA): $1.1M
Runtime: 1h 58m
Sound Mix: Dolby Digital
Aspect Ratio: Flat (1.66:1)

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