Indian Oscar Hopeful and Cannes Grand Prix Winner All We Imagine as Light Sets U.S. Fall

Publish date: 2024-07-18

Janus Films and Sideshow have set the U.S. release date for “All We Imagine as Light,” the critically acclaimed Indian drama that won the Grand Prix at the Cannes Film Festival, for Nov. 15 in New York and Los Angeles, with a nationwide expansion to follow.

Written and directed by Payal Kapadia in her narrative directorial debut, the film tells the story of two women in Mumbai — Prabha, a troubled nurse who receives an unexpected gift from her estranged husband, and Anu, her young roommate who is seeking a place to be intimate with her boyfriend. A trip to a beach town allows them to find a space for their desires to manifest. The film stars Kani Kusruti, Divya Prabha, Chhaya Kadam and Hridhu Haroon.

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The co-distributors hope the drama will be India’s official selection for international feature, as it will seek awards consideration in other categories, including best picture. The distributor previously found success at the Oscars with Japan’s international feature winner “Drive My Car” (2021), which also nabbed nominations for best picture, director (Ryusuke Hamaguchi), and adapted screenplay. The studio also gathered nods for 2022’s “EO” from Poland and the documentary “All That Breathes” from Shaunak Sen. India has received three noms for best international feature since first submitting in 1957 — Mehboob Khan’s “Mother India” (1957), Mira Nair’s “Salaam Bombay!” (1988) and Ashutosh Gowariker’s “Lagaan” (2001). Pan Nalin’s “Last Film Show” (2022) is the last and only film to make the preliminary shortlist.

The film premiered in competition at Cannes in May, receiving high praise from critics and attendees, currently boasting a perfect 100% Rotten Tomatoes score. It was the first Indian film to screen in competition in 30 years. In her review for Variety, Jessica Kiang called it “a glowing portrait of urban connection and sisterhood,” adding, “Few films have ever so beautifully captured the lonesome romance of Mumbai after dark.”

Based on its premiere labeling at TIFF, the drama will be making rounds during the fall festivals, which will also include New York and Telluride.

The film was produced by Thomas Hakim and Julian Graff through their French-based company Petit Chaos, in co-production with the Indian companies Chalk & Cheese Films and Another Birth, as well as by the Netherlands’s BALDR Film, Luxembourg’s Les Films Fauves, Italy’s Pulpa Films and France’s Arte France Cinéma. It is scheduled to be released in France by Condor Distribution on Oct. 2.

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