In Payal Kapadia’s extraordinary drama, three women in Mumbai search for connections amid the city’s vibrant and darkly alienating churn.

“All We Imagine as Light,” in theaters Friday, has been widely celebrated since its Cannes premiere, and Kapadia heralded as a major new talent to watch, which is just as it should be. The film is a reminder of the transcendent power of cinema, even, and perhaps especially, when not all that much is happening.