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After making waves at the Cannes Film Festival, Payal Kapadia’s film,All We Imagine As Light, made history with a Best Director nomination at the Golden Globes. The Indian-French co-production has earned two nominations, including one for Best Motion Picture in a Non-English Language category. Interestingly, it is Kapadia’s debut feature film.
The film depicts the lives of two nurses living in Mumbai, played by Indian actresses Kani Kusruti and Divya Prabha. The film received critical acclaim for the grounded portrayal of working women in modern India.All We Imagine as Lightwas the recipient of the Grand Prix award at the Cannes Festival.
Payal Kapadia’s Golden Globes Nomination ForAll We Imagine As LightIs Historical
Payal Kapadia’s Indian film,All We Imagine As Light, appears to have won over American audiences. Following its successful premiere at Cannes, the film has featured in the United States awards circuit. It has won the Best International Film award from the New York Film Critics Circle, the Los Angeles Film Critics Association, and the San Diego Film Critics Society.
A couple of weeks back,The New York Timesincluded the film as their top pick when listing out the Best Movies of 2024. The outlet mentioned that Kapadia“incorporates images of everyday people milling through the city, images that connect her characters to a sea of humanity.”It was no surprise when the film got two Golden Globes nods.
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Kapadia became the second director from India to be nominated in the Best Director – Motion Picture category in 27 years. The previous Golden Globe nomination was earned by acclaimed director Shekhar Kapur for the 1998 filmElizabeth, starring Cate Blanchett.
Kapadia was deeply honored by the achievement and expressed her gratitude in a statement, urging Indian fans to watch the film in theaters. Her statement read (via India Today Digital):
I’m deeply honored by this nomination and grateful to the HFPA for this recognition. This is a celebration of everyone who worked so passionately on the film. To everyone in India, All We Imagine as Light is still in theaters—please go watch it and support us!
Kapadia found herself nominated among some reputed names in the Best Director category. The nominees in the list included: Coralie Fargeat (The Substance), Edward Berger (Conclave), Sean Baker (Anora), Jacques Audiard (Emilia Pérez), and Brady Corbet (The Brutalist).
The film has also earned a nomination in the Best Foreign Film category. The other nominees in this Golden Globe category included:Emilia Pérez,The Girl with the Needle,I’m Still Here,The Seed of the Sacred Fig, andVermiglio.
All We Imagine As LightActress Opens Up About Golden Globe Nominations & Oscar Snub
Actress Chhaya Kadam played the role of Parvaty in the film, a cook who is forced to move back to her village after a fight against a capitalistic builder. After the Golden Globe nominations for the film, Kadam shared that she was happy for and extremely proud of Payal Kapadia.
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Speaking toEntertainment Times, she shared that it was a proud moment for Indian cinema and all Indians. She shared:
Her hard work of so many years is reaping good results. Also, it is not just for Payal, but a win for Indian cinema and a proud moment for Indians.
Kadam is also part ofLost Ladies, which is the country’s official entry for the Oscars in the Best International Film category. Interestingly,Lost Ladieswas picked overAll We Imagine As Lightas the official entry, causing some controversy. During the announcement of their choice, Ravi Kottarakara, the president of the Film Federation of India, made a comment that did not sit well with Kapadia and fans of her film.
Kottarakara, FFI president, shared that the selection committee felt that“they were watching a European film taking place in India, not an Indian film taking place in India”(via Associated Press). While Kapadia praised the choice ofLost Ladies(which is another gem of a film), she was critical of the FFI’s statement. She shared:
I’m really happy with the film they chose. It’s a really nice film. I liked it a lot. But I feel like these kind of statements, I don’t know what purpose they serve. The committee that made the selection was 13 men. Is that very Indian? Then I don’t mind so much.
When Kadam was posed the question, she agreed thatAll We Imagine As Lightdeserved the slot from India. However, she couldn’t give up on her other film either. She shared:
I would have been happy had that been nominated from India, but for me personally, both are my babies, and I cannot differentiate between the two. I am happy for what both films have achieved.
Kiran Rao, the director ofLost Ladies, celebrated the Golden Globe nominations for Kapadia’s film. She wrote on her Instagram stories,“Christmas has come early this year.”She also added,“Brava Payal!”(via The Hindustan Times).
Divya Prabha, one of the lead actresses inAll We Imagine as Light, replied to the story,“Let’s celebrate this together.”Despite the Oscar snub controversy, it appears that the artists in both Indian films share no bad blood.
Golden Globes 2023 Saw Another Indian Film Bagging An Award
While the 82nd Golden Globes event in 2025 has added an Indian film to its list of nominees, the 80th Golden Globes honored another Indian film with an award. Indian filmmaker S.S. Rajamouli’s hit filmRRRachieved a major milestone when it won the award for Best Original Song – Motion Picture.
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RRRwas also nominated for Best Motion Picture in a Non-English Language category. However, it was the catchy songNaatu Naatufrom the film, composed by MM Keeravani, that bagged the coveted awards. The electrifying vibe and energetic choreography of the film impressed audiences and went viral among American fans on social media.
The history of Indian films in Golden Globes begins with the 1957 filmDo Aankhen Barah Haath, which won the Samuel Goldwyn International Film Award for best film produced outside of the United States. 1982’sGandhi, which swept the Golden Globes and Oscars, was a co-production between India and the United Kingdom.
Mira Nair’sSalaam Bombay!clinched a nomination for Best Foreign Film while her other filmMonsoon Weddingwas also nominated in the same category. Danny Boyle’s Oscar winnerSlumdog Millionairewon the Golden Globe for Best Original Score for Indian music icon A.R. Rahman.
The 82nd Golden Globe Awards is scheduled for June 01, 2025, and fans can catch it on CBS and Paramount+.
Hashim Asraff
Senior Writer
Articles Published :3018
Hashim Asraff is a Senior Entertainment Writer at FandomWire, with over 2,800 articles published on celebrity culture, comic book movies, and major TV franchises. With a background in Sociology and a keen interest in pop culture, Hashim brings a unique lens to breaking news stories, character deep-dives, film rankings, and fan-driven perspectives.His coverage often includes the MCU, DCU, hit network shows, and celebrity profiles, giving readers a rich blend of entertainment and analysis. A longtime fan of crime and investigative series, Hashim has watched thousands of episodes of NCIS, Criminal Minds, Law & Order: SVU, Bones, Blue Bloods, and The RookieA passionate storyteller and wordsmith, Hashim has also worked as a ghostwriter and managed multiple social media handles. He brought his writing expertise to FandomWire to also pursue his lifelong love for cinema and television.
