Dreams are everywhere; everyone has them. In Bipuljit Basu’s empathetic Redlight to Limelight, we see those who are the most fragile dreaming, and all you can do is dream with them.

Sex workers and their kids in a Kolkata brothel run Cam-On, a video production unit where they create stories. Beyond their harsh reality, they find joy in storytelling and hope to improve their environment.

Bipuljit Basu keeps his documentary Redlight to Limelight in a very free-form format. He allows threads to fade away or returns to them much later. This unique and somewhat unpredictable nature to his filmmaking process allows for something positive to shine through. It allows his subjects to be themselves. There doesn’t appear to be a plan; he wanted to show us this group’s experience and how it affects them. It’s deeply interesting, and it wins you over quickly with his unrelenting energy.

Our adults in Redlight to Limelight are as strong as women can be. Often disregarded by their own families, they take a vocation that they know is their best shot at surviving and, more importantly, keeping their children alive. It comes at a cost, of course, none of their families will talk or help them because of the “shame” it brings to their family name. So, these strong, resilient women do what they can, and as a group, they survive.

Despite all of the hardship that we see within this group, what also hits you is the power of art. We see how earnest Raban is (otherwise, these women would not trust him). Still, we also see how, by including them and making something personal to them with the short film, they become incredibly engaged in the process. Filmmaking, art, music, whatever, when people are allowed to be creative, it becomes something joyous, and we see that here in spades during the film.

Their creativity flows, and you are as warmed as you can be for people in such a situation as theirs. It is all fine and well to just create something, but to have your fellow collaborators actively engaged in the filmmaking process is something entirely different. We see how different they become when around Raban and when making the film. It’s a stark contrast to how they treat practically any other man that we see in Redlight to Limelight.

That agony is apparent for these women, and possibly we could have spent more time learning about their situation. Still, it seems that Redlight to Limelight wants to give them their voice while also showing us that their situation does not define them as people. Hence, you almost understand why we do not get that more in-depth look into their lives.

As mentioned at the beginning of the review, this group is made up of dreamers, and all we can do is hope that their dreams come true in some way. With their unwavering resilience, you wouldn’t want to bet against them.

★★★ 1/2

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