"India has rarely looked so beautiful onscreen. Against the anguish of his human characters, director Santosh Sivan juxtaposes a tranquil, green world in the hills of the southwestern state of Keralain 1937, 10 years before independence." (Toronto Star) Henry Moores (Roache), a British planter, hatches an ambitious plan to harvest spices up in the mountains. He needs a road built before monsoon season, aided by his loyal friend and foreman T.K. (Bose). He is also having an illicit affair with his beautiful servant Sajani (Das). But when Sajani's husband finds out she has been unfaithful, a series of events occur that bring issues of colonialism and class to the surface. As Moores tries to cover up his indiscretions, T.K. finds himself increasingly torn between his English friend and his Indian world. "Rahul Bose has a winning presence—eager with a touch of wariness or wary with a touch of eagerness, and never entirely at home. He keeps the movie from seeming too comfy—a good thing." (David Edelstein, New York Magazine) "As you might expect from a Merchant-Ivory production, Before the Rains is saddled with predictable lushness—even a streak of blood on a dirty wondow is aestheticized until it looks like stained glass—and the sensuality here can crowd out the sense. Still, director Santosh Sivan imparts a vastness and a sense of wonder to the film, qualities reminiscent of a Thomas Cole painting: They remind you why the Brits thought conquering India was a good idea in the first place." (Village Voice) more at beforetherains.net 35mm. Cosponsored with the South Asia Program.
2007, color, 1 hour 37 minutes, India/UK/USA