Water (2005)

NEUTRAL

Various

92%

2005, Drama, 1h 57m

RT Critics’ Score: 91% (UNBIASED)
RT Audience Score: 90%
Awards & Nominations: NA

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Critics Consensus

This compassionate work of social criticism is also luminous, due to both its lyrical imagery and cast.

Audience Consensus

Water is like a Bollywood movie, but without all the singing and dancing. It’s a tragic love story that will make you cry, but it’s also an important film that sheds light on the oppression of Indian widows. The performances are incredible, especially from the female leads, and the production design is absolutely stunning. Just make sure you have some tissues handy.

Storyline

In 1938 India, a young widow named Chuyia is sent to live with other outcast widows on an ashram, where her presence transforms the lives of her fellow residents in Deepa Mehta’s compassionate and lyrical drama, Water.

Production Company(ies)
Complete Fiction Media Rights Capital,

Distributor
NA

Release Type
Theatrical

Filming Location(s)

MPAA / Certificate

Year of Release
2005

Technical Specs

Color:

Color
Sound mix:

Auro 11.1 Dolby Atmos IMAX 6-Track
Aspect ratio:

1.78 : 11.85 : 12.39 : 1
Runtime:

NA
Language(s):
Country of origin:

Canada, India
Release date:

Release Date (Streaming): Aug 29, 2006

Genre(s)
Drama

Keyword(s)
starring Seema Biswas, Lisa Ray, John Abraham, Sarala Kariyawasam, Manorama, Kulbhushan Kharbanda, directed by Deepa Mehta, written by Deepa Mehta, drama, box office performance, budget, reviewed by Alyx Vesey, Shubhra Gupta, Deborah Ross, Andrew Sarris, Roger Moore, Marjorie Baumgarten, Jimmy Cage, Richard Propes, Kaleem Aftab, Thomas Caldwell, Jonathan Kiefer, PG-13, Mahatma Gandhi, India, widows, ashram, social criticism, lyrical imagery, cast, Sumant Jayakrishnan, A.R Rahman, producer David Hamilton

Box Office Details

Worldwide gross: NA
Worldwide gross (inflation-adjusted): NA
Worldwide gross ranking (inflation-adjusted): NA
Worldwide tickets sold (est.): NA

US/Canada gross: NA
US/Canada gross (inflation-adjusted): NA
US/Canada gross ranking (inflation-adjusted): NA
US/Canada opening weekend:
US/Canada opening weekend (inflation-adjusted): NA
US/Canada opening weekend ranking (inflation-adjusted): NA

Budget and Earnings Details
Production budget (est.): NA
Production budget (inflation-adjusted): NA
Production budget ranking: NA
Marketing and distribution budget (inflation-adjusted est.): NA
Box office net earnings to date (inflation-adjusted est.): NA
ROI to date (est.): NA
ROI ranking: NA

Cast & Crew

Seema Biswas

Lisa Ray

John Abraham

Sarala Kariyawasam

Manorama

Shakuntala

Kalyani

Narayana

Chuyia

Madhumati

Seema Biswas – Shakuntala
Lisa Ray – Kalyani
John Abraham – Narayana
Sarala Kariyawasam – Chuyia
Manorama – Madhumati
Kulbhushan Kharbanda – Sadananda

Deepa Mehta

David Hamilton

Director

Writer

Producer

Director(s)
Deepa Mehta

Writer(s)
Deepa Mehta

Producer(s)
David Hamilton

Film Festivals
Toronto

Awards & Nominations
NA

Academy Awards
Oscar Nominees

Top Reviews

Alyx Vesey

Shubhra Gupta

Deborah Ross

Andrew Sarris

Roger Moore

Bitch Media

The Indian Express

The Spectator

Observer

Orlando Sentinel

WATER
All Critics (96) | Top Critics (39) | Fresh (87) | Rotten (9)
Overall, Mehta’s maturing ear for dialogue benefits the cast’s talents. In addition, art director Sumant Jayakrishnan sumptuous production design and A.R. Rahman’s score deepen reception of the film.

January 7, 2021

Alyx Vesey
Bitch Media
TOP CRITIC
Water is stunning because it is so quiet. The devastating unfairness of the lives of women interred in darkness, intertwined with the tragic love story of Narayan and Kalyani is played out without a hint of melodrama.

June 21, 2019

Shubhra Gupta
The Indian Express
TOP CRITIC
In the end, Water is too much of a compromise. A compromise between, perhaps, shocking the West with the subject matter – a eight-year-old widow! – and going for a popular Indian audience who will demand Bollywood romance.

August 22, 2018

Deborah Ross
The Spectator
TOP CRITIC
Quite possibly the best picture of the year thus far, with no fewer than three of the most luminous female performances I have ever seen onscreen.

July 19, 2006

Andrew Sarris
Observer
TOP CRITIC
Mehta prevailed, and this scandalous, beautiful and very moving tale of repression, hope and a tragedy is her triumph, and Hindu India’s shame.

July 7, 2006 | Rating: 5/5

Roger Moore
Orlando Sentinel
TOP CRITIC
Beautiful yet sad, a tale drenched in centuries of stagnant, holy water that cleanses the body but putrefies the soul.

May 20, 2006 | Rating: 3.5/5

Marjorie Baumgarten
Austin Chronicle
TOP CRITIC
WATER is a moving and important film that presents a horrific true story in beautiful images. The only downers are the somewhat too constructed dramaturgy and the sometimes missing closeness to the characters.

April 25, 2022 | Rating: 7/10

Jimmy Cage
Jimmy Cage Movie Reviews (YouTube)
The crown jewel of Deepah Mehta’s career.

September 26, 2020 | Rating: 4.0/4.0

Richard Propes
TheIndependentCritic.com
Feels slightly compromised, but a riveting tearjerker that’s stunning to look at.

November 3, 2018 | Rating: 3/5

Kaleem Aftab
The List
Mehta explores the politics of religion to highlight how religious hypocrisy is used to ensure women are undermined and made subservient for economic purposes.

February 11, 2013 | Rating: 4/5

Thomas Caldwell
Cinema Autopsy
August 7, 2008 | Rating: 3/5

Jonathan Kiefer
Sacramento News & Review
Powerful tale that unfortunately fails to provide any kind of real historical context for the oppression of Indian widows.

April 3, 2007

Louis Proyect
rec.arts.movies.reviews…

Plot
In 1938 India, a young widow named Chuyia is sent to live with other outcast widows on an ashram, where her presence transforms the lives of her fellow residents in Deepa Mehta’s compassionate and lyrical drama, Water.

Trivia