Heat and Dust (1983)

Director:

James Ivory

Writers:

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

Release Date:

January 1983 (UK)

Genre:

Drama

Plot:

Anne is investigating the life of her grand-aunt Olivia, whose destiny has always been shrouded with scandal...

Plot Keywords:

India | 1920s | Love Triangle | Horse | Interracial Romance

Awards:

Won BAFTA Film Award. Another 1 win & 8 nominations

Cast

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)

Runtime:

133 min

Country:

UK

Language:

English

Color:

Color

Sound Mix:

Dolby

Certification:

Iceland:L | Singapore:PG | Australia:M | Finland:K-12 | UK:15 | USA:R | Ireland:18

Filming Locations:

Andhra Pradesh, India

Company:

Merchant Ivory Productions

Trivia:

First cinema feature of Patrick Godfrey.

East, West and Everything In Between : A BONAFIDE CLASSIC --

Based on Ruth Prawer Jhabvala's Booker Prize winning novel of the same name, this film is not so much as being about India but rather using the country as an effective setting to tell a story spanning approximately 3 generations. Two story lines - one set in the past and one in the present - are juxtaposed and connected by the narrative of a young British woman who seeks to uncover the truth about an ancestor who once caused quite a scandal by having an affair with a local Nawab. The story lines examine the impact of Western and Indian cultures as lifestyles, social mores, and centuries of history clash and collide. A tapestry of India is woven, as seen through the eyes of the narrator, a foreigner, who sincerely attempts to grasp and interpret her observations. The story and the screenplay for this movie speak volumes about Ms. Jhabvala's extraordinary literary and cinematic talents as a social and historical commentator, storyteller, and screenwriter.