Director's Statement

The India I grew up in was very different from what it is today. Back in the 70’s and 80’s it was a quasi-socialist, closed society. There were two types of cars on the roads and one channel on TV. But today, the country is undergoing cataclysmic changes. Economic liberalization begun in the 1990’s, has created incredible wealth and opportunities in its burgeoning cities. Educated, city-dwelling young people now have well-paying jobs and are tapped into a globalized youth culture. And they are challenging the mores of a society steeped in tradition. Megalopolises like Mumbai are also a magnet for people from rural areas. They cram into overcrowded cities hoping to be part of this economic miracle. But for a lot of migrants its nothing more than a never-ending struggle for survival.

This social turmoil is the setting for Bombay Summer. Like the characters, the city is also in the throes of change. Locations used in the film like the chawl (tenement house) and textile mills hark back to an era that is quickly receding and giving way to mega malls and the consuming culture.

Stylistically, the film goes against the grain of contemporary cinema that favors kinetic editing and rapid camera movements. Instead, it adopts a low-key style that pays tribute to Asian masters like Yasujiro Ozu, Hou Hsiao-Hsien and Edward Yang.