Mumbai’s Twilight Stories: Exploring Love, Politics, and Hope in All We Imagine As Light

Feature and Cover Mumbai's Twilight Stories Exploring Love Politics and Hope in All We Imagine As Light

“Evening is my favourite time of the day,” muses a character in Payal Kapadia’s debut feature film, All We Imagine As Light. As twilight blankets Mumbai, the city comes alive, bustling with activity. Markets glow under fluorescent lights, shops hum with energy, and trains carry women returning home from work. This enchanting portrayal of the city at night earned Kapadia’s film the Grand Prix at Cannes. The luminous imagery evokes the sentiment often attributed to Vermeer, who was said to “paint with light.” In Kapadia’s film, light becomes a narrative tool, dancing across frames to illuminate hope while secrets linger in the shadows. Twice in the story, the beam of a phone’s flashlight pierces the darkness, revealing handwritten confessions of love—an expression of feelings that otherwise remain unspoken.

The film weaves together the lives of three women—Prabha, Anu, and Parvaty—each navigating personal and societal challenges. Prabha, played by Kani Kusruti, is a pragmatic nurse being pursued romantically by a doctor. While she is drawn to him, her marital status complicates things. Although separated from her husband, Prabha feels societal pressure to uphold the ideal of a faithful wife. Her roommate, Anu, portrayed by Divya Prabha, is a free-spirited cook involved in a secret relationship with a Muslim man. Their tender romance is fraught with political undercurrents. At one point, he hesitantly asks if her father would approve of him “if I used a Hindi name.” Meanwhile, Parvaty, brought to life by Chhaya Kadam, faces eviction from her home as developers advance the city’s relentless gentrification. A banner draped across her building cynically proclaims, “Class is a privilege reserved for the privileged!”

These intertwined stories delve into how politics intricately shapes personal lives. This theme reflects Kapadia’s long-standing interests. Her earlier work, A Night of Knowing Nothing, a documentary on the 2015 student protests against Narendra Modi’s controversial appointment of a political sympathizer as a university chair, showcased her ability to merge the personal with the political. In All We Imagine As Light, Kapadia extends her empathetic lens to each character, depicting their struggles with nuance and warmth.

Prabha, in a poignant conversation with Anu, reflects on her failed marriage. As her voice carries wistful memories of what once was, the camera shifts its gaze to Mumbai’s towering high-rises, their windows speckled with light. This visual juxtaposition subtly underscores a collective sense of longing. How many other women, the scene seems to ask, are out there grappling with unfulfilled desires and the ache of their own private sorrows?

Kapadia’s film takes this idea further, exploring how political forces restrict possibilities, closing off avenues of love, connection, and belonging. Against this backdrop, All We Imagine As Light offers a counter-narrative—one of curiosity and compassion. It uncovers fleeting yet profound moments of intimacy amid societal constraints. Whether through its portrayal of friendships, romantic bonds, or shared struggles, the film finds beauty and humanity in the everyday lives of its characters.

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

More Related Stories

-+=