Jimmy O. Yang (performing a bit)

The gorgeously enveloping new drama All We Imagine is Light opens on a warm, muggy evening in Mumbai. You feel immediately transported, caught up in the bustle and flow as young men stack crates on the sidewalk, older women sell food in open-air markets, and commuter trains rattle their way across a glimmering cityscape.

The gorgeously enveloping new drama All We Imagine is Light opens on a warm, muggy evening in Mumbai. You feel immediately transported, caught up in the bustle and flow as young men stack crates on the sidewalk, older women sell food in open-air markets, and commuter trains rattle their way across a glimmering cityscape.

Over this scene, we hear the voices of unidentified locals, talking about how invigorating, but also how draining, life in the city can be. It can be especially overwhelming for the many who moved here from distant villages, leaving their families behind.

Over this scene, we hear the voices of unidentified locals, talking about how invigorating, but also how draining, life in the city can be. It can be especially overwhelming for the many who moved here from distant villages, leaving their families behind.

Over this scene, we hear the voices of unidentified locals, talking about how invigorating, but also how draining, life in the city can be. It can be especially overwhelming for the many who moved here from distant villages, leaving their families behind.

The writer and director Payal Kapadia, who was born in Mumbai herself, made her first feature a few years ago with A Night of Knowing Nothing, a documentary that blended fiction and non-fiction elements. In a way, All We Imagine is Light, her first dramatic feature, also blurs the boundaries.

The writer and director Payal Kapadia, who was born in Mumbai herself, made her first feature a few years ago with A Night of Knowing Nothing, a documentary that blended fiction and non-fiction elements. In a way, All We Imagine is Light, her first dramatic feature, also blurs the boundaries.

The writer and director Payal Kapadia, who was born in Mumbai herself, made her first feature a few years ago with A Night of Knowing Nothing, a documentary that blended fiction and non-fiction elements. In a way, All We Imagine is Light, her first dramatic feature, also blurs the boundaries.

Some of the stories we hear in that opening sequence were drawn from interviews with actual Mumbai residents. and Kapadia introduces us to her two leads so deftly and casually that it takes us a while to even realize that they are, in fact, the leads. One of them is a woman named Prabha, who works as a head nurse at a hospital. The other is a younger nurse at the hospital named Anu.

Some of the stories we hear in that opening sequence were drawn from interviews with actual Mumbai residents. and Kapadia introduces us to her two leads so deftly and casually that it takes us a while to even realize that they are, in fact, the leads. One of them is a woman named Prabha, who works as a head nurse at a hospital. The other is a younger nurse at the hospital named Anu.

Some of the stories we hear in that opening sequence were drawn from interviews with actual Mumbai residents. and Kapadia introduces us to her two leads so deftly and casually that it takes us a while to even realize that they are, in fact, the leads. One of them is a woman named Prabha, who works as a head nurse at a hospital. The other is a younger nurse at the hospital named Anu.

Prabha and Anu are roommates, and about as different as can be. Anu, played by Divya Prabha, is flirty, fun-loving, and a little impetuous. Prabha, played by Kani Kuzruti, is quieter and more responsible. She's the one who does most of the cooking, and reluctantly agrees to cover the rent when Anu comes up short.

Prabha and Anu are roommates, and about as different as can be. Anu, played by Divya Prabha, is flirty, fun-loving, and a little impetuous. Prabha, played by Kani Kuzruti, is quieter and more responsible. She's the one who does most of the cooking, and reluctantly agrees to cover the rent when Anu comes up short.

Prabha and Anu are roommates, and about as different as can be. Anu, played by Divya Prabha, is flirty, fun-loving, and a little impetuous. Prabha, played by Kani Kuzruti, is quieter and more responsible. She's the one who does most of the cooking, and reluctantly agrees to cover the rent when Anu comes up short.

Even so, there's a real sisterly warmth to Anu and Prabha's relationship, and the more they get to know each other, the more their similarities, as well as their differences, come into focus. Both Prabha and Anu came to Mumbai from the southern state of Kerala, and while they rarely see their families back home, both are still governed by strict expectations, especially of their romantic lives.

Even so, there's a real sisterly warmth to Anu and Prabha's relationship, and the more they get to know each other, the more their similarities, as well as their differences, come into focus. Both Prabha and Anu came to Mumbai from the southern state of Kerala, and while they rarely see their families back home, both are still governed by strict expectations, especially of their romantic lives.

Even so, there's a real sisterly warmth to Anu and Prabha's relationship, and the more they get to know each other, the more their similarities, as well as their differences, come into focus. Both Prabha and Anu came to Mumbai from the southern state of Kerala, and while they rarely see their families back home, both are still governed by strict expectations, especially of their romantic lives.

Anu is dating a young man named Shiaz, and because he's Muslim and she isn't, she must keep their relationship a secret. Prabha, meanwhile, has a husband who moved to Germany some time ago for work. She's barely heard from him since, and fears that their marriage, which was arranged by their parents, is long over. All we imagine as light, in other words, is about a lot of things.

Anu is dating a young man named Shiaz, and because he's Muslim and she isn't, she must keep their relationship a secret. Prabha, meanwhile, has a husband who moved to Germany some time ago for work. She's barely heard from him since, and fears that their marriage, which was arranged by their parents, is long over. All we imagine as light, in other words, is about a lot of things.

Anu is dating a young man named Shiaz, and because he's Muslim and she isn't, she must keep their relationship a secret. Prabha, meanwhile, has a husband who moved to Germany some time ago for work. She's barely heard from him since, and fears that their marriage, which was arranged by their parents, is long over. All we imagine as light, in other words, is about a lot of things.