Heat and Dust (1983)

Anne is investigating the life of her grand-aunt Olivia, whose destiny has always been shrouded with scandal. The search leads back to the early 1920s, when Olivia, recently married to ... See full summary »

Director:

James Ivory

Writers:

Ruth Prawer Jhabvala (novel), Ruth Prawer Jhabvala (screenplay)

Stars:

Christopher Cazenove, Greta Scacchi, Julian Glover

Won 1 BAFTA Film Award. Another 1 win & 8 nominations.

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Christopher Cazenove	...	Douglas Rivers, the Assistant Collector (The Nineteen Twenties in the Civil Lines at Satipur)
Greta Scacchi	...	Olivia, his wife (The Nineteen Twenties in the Civil Lines at Satipur)
Julian Glover	...	Crawford, the District Collector (The Nineteen Twenties in the Civil Lines at Satipur)
Susan Fleetwood	...	Mrs. Crawford, the Burra Mensahib (The Nineteen Twenties in the Civil Lines at Satipur)
Patrick Godfrey	...	Saunders, the Medical Officer (The Nineteen Twenties in the Civil Lines at Satipur)
Jennifer Kendal	...	Mrs. Saunders (The Nineteen Twenties in the Civil Lines at Satipur)
Shashi Kapoor	...	The Nawab (At the Palace in Khatm)
Madhur Jaffrey	...	Begum Mussarat Jahan, the Nawab's mother (At the Palace in Khatm)
Nickolas Grace	...	Harry Hamilton-Paul (At the Palace in Khatm)
Barry Foster	...	Major Minnies, the Political Agent (At the Palace in Khatm)
Julie Christie	...	Anne (1982. In Satipur Town)
Zakir Hussain	...	Inder Lal, Anne's landlord (1982. In Satipur Town)
Ratna Pathak	...	Ritu, Inder Lal's wife (1982. In Satipur Town)
Tarla Mehta	...	Inder Lal's mother (1982. In Satipur Town)
Charles McCaughan	...	Chid (1982. In Satipur Town)

Storyline

Anne is investigating the life of her grand-aunt Olivia, whose destiny has always been shrouded with scandal. The search leads back to the early 1920s, when Olivia, recently married to Douglas, a civil servant in the colonial administration, comes to live with him in India. Slowly, Olivia becomes fascinated by India and by the local ruler, a nawab who combines British distinction with Indian pomp and ruthlessness. This fascination is not without risks: the region is being ransacked by a group of sanguinary bandits, and intrigues are opposing the prejudiced British community led by Major Minnies and Dr. Saunders against the nawab. As Anne delves into the history of her grand-aunt, she is led to reconsider her own life.

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Plot Keywords:

nawab | india | scandal | 1920s | singing | 

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Genres:

Drama | Romance

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Certificate:

R

Details

Country:

UK

Language:

English

Release Date:

January 1983 (UK)

Also Known As:

Avak Lohet

Filming Locations:

Andhra Pradesh, India

Company Credits

Production Co:

Merchant Ivory Productions

Technical Specs

Runtime:

133 min

Sound Mix:

Dolby

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

1.66 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

Greta Scacchi was only chosen for her part one week before shooting.

User Reviews

It has its charms

'Heat and Dust' became a minor favorite of mine from the first time I saw it shortly after it was released in 1983. It isn't up to the Merchant/Ivory standards of 'A Room with a View' 'Maurice' or 'Howards End' but it's much better than 'Remains of the Day' and 'The Europeans'.

This is probably a "fetish" film for a lot of people. It has hooks that don't release. For me it is the Schumann piano music Greta Scacchi is forever playing for Nikolas Grace and Shashi Kapoor. And Greta Scacchi herself, very early in her career and more beautiful than ever. She's a very good actress too, within her limits. Nikolas Grace (he was Anthony Blanche in 'Brideshead Revisited') once again steals the show as a home-sick ex-patriot stuck in India living with the Rajah in his palace, a sort of roguish court adviser that abounded in India during the Raj period of Empire. Shashi Kapoor, the Rajah, has one of those riveting faces, and his acting is good, within its limits. Julie Christie plays the modern-day descendant of the Greta Scacchi character and goes to India to investigate her great aunt's life and fate with the handsome Maharajah.

As so often happens with modern time settings in India the movie becomes a cultural travelogue in the National Geographic style, but it's pleasant filler. There's a sub-plot about sex and babies and seeking the middle path, the usual stuff in all Western movies about India, but these interruptions from the story of Scacchi and Kapoor grow annoying with each successive flash-forward in the action.

There is one classic performance in this movie which makes it worth seeing now and then. Madhur Jaffrey's Begum is a masterpiece of character acting. She is the Maharajah's gorgon of a mother, but a gorgon with a wicked sense of humor and disdain. Her part was not large enough though. The secondary roles are played well by English and Indian stalwarts from other Merchant/Ivory films and Masterpiece Theatre productions. Christopher Casanove, Scacchi's up-tight husband, gives a good performance and looks wonderful with his clothes off.

It's filmed beautifully, especially in the Himalayas, and the music is delightful; a mixture of sitar and Schumann throughout.

Not a heavy hitter but it's a mood lifter and the best sort of eye candy. There is nothing preachy or new age about it, like the ghastly 'Little Buddha', and I always feel more peaceful after I've seen 'Heat and Dust'. We need movies like this, and 'Enchanted April' and 'Howards End'. Especially these days.