All We Imagine As Light: Is the Audience’s Gaze Missing the Light?
By : Roshna Arafa Ali
Update: 2024-11-27 07:26 GMT
The first thought I shared with my friends after watching AWIAL in theatres was how the Malayali netizens are going to react to Divya Prabha’s “bold scenes”. I had gone to the movies with two non-Malayali friends, who are fairly familiar with Malayalam cinema, but not the Malayali audience. While I have always maintained that the audience has had an influence on how Malayalam cinema has evolved for the better, in this situation, I wasn’t sure how to work out that equation.
All We Imagine As Light is somehow widely considered a Malayalam movie. Two out of the three main characters are Malayalis, played by Mollywood actors, and so are most other roles with comparable screen time. We also have actor Chaya Kadam playing the third main role, and a few other actors playing the minor roles as well. It is directed by Payal Kapadia, a Mumbai-born, FTII alumna, with many accolades under her belt as a filmmaker. Does that matter? As the audience seems eager to count it among the critically acclaimed Mollywood films coming out in theatres recently, is anyone going to go shout at them “Is it really a Malayalam movie though?”.
Regardless, a small part of the Malayali crowd seems to think that it is a movie made only for their eyes, and is in no way un-eager to express their reaction to the movie in public. This would have been insignificant, except that this entire crowd's focus is solely on the bold scenes acted in by Divya Prabha, the actress portraying one of the leading roles. The video seems to be searched a lot, downloaded a lot, and talked about - a lot. While there is a bit of clapback from the progressive circles, this whole ordeal is surely embarrassing.
This reminds me of the controversy regarding actor Radhika Apte’s love-making scenes in Parched. There are a lot of similarities between the two movies - stories of women holding on to each other while wading through a world not made for them - and there is a lot of similarity in how the crowd is (not) appreciating the nude scenes. This should give us some perspective - that much of this controversy is nothing but a faint memory now, and Apte still shines on as one of our finest actors. But much is to be discussed about the audience's reaction. Why are we so uncomfortable with female nudity when it is not aimed to titillate you?
The heart of the movie is missed in such perverted conversations. The film is an ode to the people who make Mumbai the dreamy city it is. The ones who trade their labour, health and time to find a space at the edge of its opportunities. Prabha (Kani Kusruti) and Anu (Divya Prabha) are two Malayali nurses, roommates, and working in the same hospital. The two have very different personalities and yet are looped back into a shared affection because of their living situations. Chaya Kadam’s Parvati works as a cafeteria attendant in the same hospital. The three wade through their lives - one a little lonely and resigned, one a little frustrated and in love, one a little irritated and determined. They look out for each other, sometimes intentionally, sometimes a little irritated with the other, in a society that tries to discourage them by denying them even a bit of personal space or a hope to dream. They deal with water-logged, overcrowded public transport on a daily basis, and worry about the lack of documented proof of living. Parvati takes Prabha to workers' protest meetings and encourages her to throw a stone at the hoarding that boasts of serving the privileged. The stone does next to nothing about the injustice of being evicted from their living space, but it gives them a lighter moment and a sense of camaraderie.
While Kani Kusruti has been through many controversies for her movie choices and her public persona and has often been lauded as well, it seems to be Divya Prabha’s turn to deal with it. Should she care? God, I hope not.
All We Imagine As Light is somehow widely considered a Malayalam movie. Two out of the three main characters are Malayalis, played by Mollywood actors, and so are most other roles with comparable screen time. We also have actor Chaya Kadam playing the third main role, and a few other actors playing the minor roles as well. It is directed by Payal Kapadia, a Mumbai-born, FTII alumna, with many accolades under her belt as a filmmaker. Does that matter? As the audience seems eager to count it among the critically acclaimed Mollywood films coming out in theatres recently, is anyone going to go shout at them “Is it really a Malayalam movie though?”.
Regardless, a small part of the Malayali crowd seems to think that it is a movie made only for their eyes, and is in no way un-eager to express their reaction to the movie in public. This would have been insignificant, except that this entire crowd's focus is solely on the bold scenes acted in by Divya Prabha, the actress portraying one of the leading roles. The video seems to be searched a lot, downloaded a lot, and talked about - a lot. While there is a bit of clapback from the progressive circles, this whole ordeal is surely embarrassing.
This reminds me of the controversy regarding actor Radhika Apte’s love-making scenes in Parched. There are a lot of similarities between the two movies - stories of women holding on to each other while wading through a world not made for them - and there is a lot of similarity in how the crowd is (not) appreciating the nude scenes. This should give us some perspective - that much of this controversy is nothing but a faint memory now, and Apte still shines on as one of our finest actors. But much is to be discussed about the audience's reaction. Why are we so uncomfortable with female nudity when it is not aimed to titillate you?
The heart of the movie is missed in such perverted conversations. The film is an ode to the people who make Mumbai the dreamy city it is. The ones who trade their labour, health and time to find a space at the edge of its opportunities. Prabha (Kani Kusruti) and Anu (Divya Prabha) are two Malayali nurses, roommates, and working in the same hospital. The two have very different personalities and yet are looped back into a shared affection because of their living situations. Chaya Kadam’s Parvati works as a cafeteria attendant in the same hospital. The three wade through their lives - one a little lonely and resigned, one a little frustrated and in love, one a little irritated and determined. They look out for each other, sometimes intentionally, sometimes a little irritated with the other, in a society that tries to discourage them by denying them even a bit of personal space or a hope to dream. They deal with water-logged, overcrowded public transport on a daily basis, and worry about the lack of documented proof of living. Parvati takes Prabha to workers' protest meetings and encourages her to throw a stone at the hoarding that boasts of serving the privileged. The stone does next to nothing about the injustice of being evicted from their living space, but it gives them a lighter moment and a sense of camaraderie.
While Kani Kusruti has been through many controversies for her movie choices and her public persona and has often been lauded as well, it seems to be Divya Prabha’s turn to deal with it. Should she care? God, I hope not.