Payal Kapadia’s debut feature film All We Imagine As Light made a strong impact on international critics during its premiere at the 77th Cannes Film Festival on Thursday. It is the first Indian movie in 30 years to enter the festival's competitive section, making the filmmaker a contender for the prestigious Palme d’Or award.

Kapadia is competing against veteran filmmakers like Francis Ford Coppola, Yorgos Lanthimos, David Cronenberg, Paul Schrader, Ali Abbasi and Sean Baker. The Film and Television Institute of India (FTII) alumna had previously won the Golden Eye award for best documentary at the 2021 Cannes Film Festival for A Night of Knowing Nothing.

Following the screening, All We Imagine As Light received glowing reviews, with critics lauding the film for its freshness and emotional resonance. Peter Bradshaw of The Guardian likened Kapadia's storytelling to the mastery of Satyajit Ray, drawing parallels to classics like Mahanagar and Aranyer Din Ratri.

“There is a freshness and emotional clarity in Payal Kapadia’s Cannes competition selection, an enriching humanity and gentleness which coexist with fervent, languorous eroticism and finally something epiphanic in the later scenes and mysterious final moments. Kapadia’s storytelling has something of Satyajit Ray’s The Big City and Days and Nights of the Forest; it is so fluent and absorbing,” Bradshaw wrote, rating the film five out of five stars.

Sophie Monk-Kaufman of IndieWire described All We Imagine as Light as a “sensual triumph”, lauding the film’s “gorgeous and absorbing” portrayal of everyday life.

“This casual everyday vignette is brimming with a sensuality (the rain, the clothes, the food, the women) that people don’t tend to notice when caught up in the rhythm of life. It takes a snapshot from a photographer removed from the situation to make you realize how full these moments are,” Monk-Kaufman wrote.

Prior to the screening, All We Imagine As Light’s cast made a splash on the red carpet. Kani Kusruti stood out with a watermelon-themed clutch, while Divya Prabha exuded elegance in a copper-hued gown. Hridu Haroon opted for a traditional veshti and embellished kurta. Kapadia and her co-producer-and-cinematographer, Ranabir Das, opted for classic black attire.

All eyes are now on whether Kapadia will clinch the coveted Palme d'Or. The final verdict will be revealed when the winners are announced on May 25. Greta Gerwig chairs this year’s jury panel, which also includes Lily Gladstone, Eva Green, Hirokazu Kore-eda, Omar Sy, J. A. Bayona, Ebru Ceylan, Pierfrancesco Favino and Nadine Labaki.