Payal Kapadia’s ‘All We Imagine as Light’ Premieres Grandly at the 77th Cannes Film Festival

Thursday was a momentous day for India at the 77th Cannes Film Festival. The Kannada film “Sunflowers Were the First Ones to Know,” directed by Chidanand S.S. Nayak from the Indian Film and Television Institute (FTII), Pune, clinched the Best Film Award in the ‘Le Cinefon’ Cinefondation section. Simultaneously, Payal Kapadia’s Malayalam-Hindi film “All We Imagine as Light” was selected for the main competition section, marking the first time in thirty years that an Indian film has achieved this honor. The last Indian film to compete was Shaji N. Karun’s “Swaham” in 1994.

Payal Kapadia, an alumnus of FTII, first made her mark at Cannes in 2017 when her short film “Afternoon Clouds” was the sole Indian film in the Cinefondation section of the 70th Cannes Film Festival. Her 2021 documentary “A Night of Knowing Nothing” was featured in the Directors’ Fortnight and won the Golden Eye Award for Best Documentary. This year, Kapadia has reached a new pinnacle, standing alongside globally acclaimed filmmakers like Francis Ford Coppola, Paolo Sorrentino, Michael Haneke, and David Cronenberg in the competition section. Her film has attracted considerable interest from distributors and buyers worldwide.

“All We Imagine as Light” premiered at the Grand Théâtre Lumière on Thursday evening to an enthusiastic reception, with the audience applauding for an extended period. Payal Kapadia and her team received a grand red-carpet welcome, complete with musical accompaniment. Cannes Film Festival director Thierry Frémaux greeted her warmly, and she later participated in an official press conference to discuss the film’s production.

The film tells the story of Prabha and Anu, two women from Kerala working as nurses in Mumbai, sharing a one-room kitchen. The lead roles are played by Kani Kusruti, Divya Prabha, Chhaya Kadam, and Hridhur Haroon. The cinematography by Ranbir Das is exceptional, capturing Mumbai’s bustling atmosphere, skies, clouds, rain, wind, and sea, transforming them into integral elements of the film.

The narrative explores the sisterhood of Prabha and Anu, who navigate life in Mumbai after leaving their remote Kerala homes. Prabha, the elder nurse, was married off quickly, only for her husband to leave for Germany shortly after. She has heard nothing from him since but remains hopeful of his return. A Malayali doctor shows interest in her, but she declines his advances. The arrival of a parcel from Germany, presumably a gift from her long-absent husband, shocks both women.

Meanwhile, young nurse Anu falls for Shiyaz, a Muslim boy from Kerala, and constantly seeks private moments with him in the crowded city. Another subplot involves a middle-aged woman deceived by a builder, left with no proof of her financial transactions after her husband’s death.

Also read: Payal Kapadia’s ‘All We Imagine As Light’ Receives Standing Ovation At Cannes

Ranbir Das’s camera skillfully captures the characters amidst Mumbai’s chaos—from the vegetable market to the bustling railway stations, crowded streets, and intimate moments in their small kitchen. The film vividly portrays the loneliness that lingers despite the city’s constant activity. Kapadia’s deliberate pacing allows the scenes to deeply resonate with the audience, portraying an environment shrouded in a subtle blanket of sorrow.

In one poignant scene, Anu sends a kiss to her lover through the clouds from her window. In another, she buys a black burqa to visit him, only to receive a message canceling their meeting. Anu’s disappointment is palpable, illustrating love’s unpredictable nature outside the cinematic world.

Prabha, Anu, and the middle-aged woman plan a trip to a seaside town outside Mumbai, giving Anu a chance for intimate time with her lover. However, fate intervenes when they find an unconscious man on the shore. As darkness encroaches on their lives, Prabha warns Anu that Mumbai is a city of illusions that can drive a person mad. In this vast city, these two women seek light together, even as shadows deepen around them.