Writer-director Payal Kapadia, a former political activist and award-winning nonfiction filmmaker, makes her fiction film debut with remarkable delicacy and power. The light, the lives and the textures of contemporary, working-class Mumbai are explored and celebrated with a vivid, humane richness. 

Prabha (Kani Kusruti) is a nurse locked in an arranged marriage to a man working overseas whom she barely knows. Anu (Divya Prabha) is her vivacious young roommate having an awkward affair with a Muslim young man. Parvaty (Chhaya Kadam), their older co-worker, is about to be evicted by a greedy developer. Kapadia's heroines face heartbreaking moral and spiritual battles as soon as they walk out of their homes each day; she captures their quiet, gentle dignity with deep wisdom and a visionary camera. The first Indian film in competition at Cannes in 30 years, All We Imagine as Light won the Grand Jury Prize.

D: Payal Kapadia, India, Malayalam/Hindi/Marathi with English Subtitles, 2024, 1h58m

Co-sponsored by the Office of Pluralism and Leadership