---
title: "Sister Midnight"
year: 2025
kind: "film"
canonical: "https://film.one/film/sister-midnight"
fi1m_id: "sister-midnight"
imdb_id: "tt32060445"
tmdb_id: 1275248
wikidata_id: "Q131443633"
fi1m_score: 76
critics_score: 73
critics_reviews: 13
published: "2026-10-03T03:36:36.645695+00:00"
updated: "2026-10-03T03:36:37.203957+00:00"
region: "CO"
licence: "© Fi1m Ltd. Written by AI under a human editor; checked against sources before publication. Quote with attribution and a link to the canonical URL."
---

# Sister Midnight (2025)

Directed by Karan Kandhari · 1h 47m · Comedy, Drama

## Identity

Sister Midnight

- **Canonical:** https://film.one/film/sister-midnight
- **Type:** Film
- **Fi1m ID:** sister-midnight
- **IMDb ID:** tt32060445
- **TMDB ID:** 1275248
- **Wikidata ID:** Q131443633
- **Same entity:** https://www.imdb.com/title/tt32060445/, https://www.themoviedb.org/movie/1275248, https://www.wikidata.org/wiki/Q131443633

**Fi1m score: 76** · Critics 73 from 13 reviews

*In a sentence:* Radhika Apte can make awkwardness funny without giving it a speech

> Radhika Apte gives *Sister Midnight* enough comic force to carry it through some uneven storytelling. Karan Kandhari’s dark comedy is worth the occasional frustration, though its visual invention sometimes distracts from the woman we came to watch.

## Synopsis

In Mumbai, Uma (Radhika Apte) struggles to find a way of being herself amid experiences that become increasingly difficult to explain. Gopal (Ashok Pathak) and Sheetal (Chhaya Kadam) belong to the human world around her, while Uma’s own behaviour pushes against the expectations placed on her. Much of her response comes through movement and expression rather than conversation. Her attempts to negotiate ordinary life lead into physical mishaps and encounters with the absurd. The story follows her frustration and unruliness into a dark comedy concerned with identity and the position of an outsider.

## Review

*Sister Midnight* is worth seeing for Radhika Apte, and sufficiently interesting around her that this need not sound like a consolation. Karan Kandhari’s dark comedy gives its central character, Uma, room to be awkward, unreasonable and difficult to explain. We are allowed to enjoy her without having every eccentricity translated into a lesson about identity. The difficulty comes when the film’s appetite for another strange image starts to take precedence over our interest in what she might do next.

Apte’s largely wordless performance makes that interest unusually durable. She communicates through physical awkwardness and an expressive face, finding comedy in the effort of getting through an encounter rather than waiting for a neatly written punchline. We laughed at Uma’s bodily ineptitude, then felt protective of her; Apte makes the embarrassment register alongside the joke. That mixture matters because a character this unruly could easily become a succession of amusing poses, and Apte keeps suggesting feelings that cannot be tidied away once the laugh has passed.

Sverre Sørdal’s cinematography gives the Mumbai setting a vivid presence, particularly in the urban nightscapes, where colour becomes part of the pleasure of watching. The carefully composed images encourage us to look beyond the performer without making her seem incidental. Shruti Gupte’s production design contributes to that visual fullness, although the sheer quantity of things inviting our attention can become a distraction. At its strongest, the picture-making gives Uma somewhere persuasive to exist; elsewhere, we become too conscious of being offered another image to appreciate.

The sound is more successful at sustaining the film’s unruly energy. Paul Banks receives the music credit, and the eclectic soundtrack suits a comedy that would rather risk a jolt than settle into a reassuring rhythm. Napoleon Stratogiannakis’s editing has the harder task of giving continuity to an episodic story whose pleasures often arrive separately. Individual passages hold our attention, but the movement between them does not always make Uma’s behaviour feel consistent, and surprise gradually becomes something we expect on schedule.

The second half takes a turn we will not describe, and Kandhari deserves credit for committing to it rather than politely signalling eccentricity throughout. Our reservation is that the change sometimes makes Uma harder to understand without making her more interesting. Chhaya Kadam supplies a welcome human presence as Sheetal, while Apte remains the strongest reason to follow the film through its less convincing stretches. The later passages need more of that attention to people, particularly when the visual ideas threaten to occupy all the available space.

As dark comedy, this works best when it lets an uncomfortable feeling survive the joke. Its sympathy for an outsider is persuasive because Apte gives that outsider a difficult, funny physical life, and Kandhari does not insist on making her agreeable. The storytelling is less assured, with an underpowered final stretch and more invention than it can always use. Give it an evening if physical comedy and deliberate strangeness appeal; expect to care more about Uma than about where the film takes her.

*Fi1m score 76, published 3 October 2026.*

## What the critics say

Most critics respond warmly to Sister Midnight’s strange dark comedy, with praise clustering around Radhika Apte’s expressive, often largely wordless performance as Uma. The reviews repeatedly credit her physical acting with making the film funny and emotionally engaging, even when its storytelling becomes unpredictable. Its carefully composed images, vivid colour and urban nightscapes also draw approval, alongside an appetite for absurdity that many critics find refreshing.

Reservations centre on cohesion: several critics find the film overstuffed or episodic, with striking images receiving more attention than character and ideas. The spread runs from enthusiastic to mixed, with no outright negative assessments among these reviews. Vulture sees the tonal shifts as growing naturally from character, while Variety finds the changes of genre emotionally and tonally incongruous. That disagreement captures the main divide: how far the film’s inventiveness sustains its emotional force.

## Straight answers

**Is Sister Midnight worth watching?**

*Sister Midnight* is worth watching for Radhika Apte’s expressive physical comedy, and we score it 76 out of 100. We recommend it if awkward humour and deliberate strangeness appeal, though the episodic storytelling and underpowered final stretch make Uma more engaging than the story around her.

**How long is Sister Midnight, and what is it rated?**

*Sister Midnight* runs 1h 47m. It is a comedy and drama film.

**Where can I watch Sister Midnight in Colombia?**

*Sister Midnight* is not on any streaming or rental service in Colombia at the moment. It is available in 3 other countries; change your country at the top of the page to see where. Availability is checked daily.

**How violent or frightening is Sister Midnight, and is it suitable for children?**

*Sister Midnight* carries a UK 15 certificate, so it is not suitable for children under 15. Its dark comedy includes physical mishaps and increasingly strange behaviour, but we cannot give a specific warning about violence or frightening material from those details alone; the certificate remains the clearest guide for younger viewers.

**How does Sister Midnight compare to The Lunchbox?**

*Sister Midnight* is the stranger, more physically comic choice beside [*The Lunchbox*](https://film.one/film/the-lunchbox), a restrained romance that also attends to loneliness and awkward connection in Mumbai. We favour *Sister Midnight* for unruly humour and Apte’s expressive performance, despite uneven storytelling; *The Lunchbox* is the better fit for tenderness, though its careful handling can feel overcautious.

**What should I watch after Sister Midnight?**

After *Sister Midnight*, try [*The Lunchbox*](https://film.one/film/the-lunchbox) (2013, Fi1m 75): For another Mumbai story attentive to loneliness and the awkwardness of connection. Then [*Daisies*](https://film.one/film/daisies) (1966, Fi1m 85): For unruly women, physical mischief and little patience with respectable behaviour.

### Reviews we read (13)

- **Vulture**, Bilge Ebiri (85/100, inferred): Ebiri finds the film colorful, moving, and deeply odd, praising how its tonal shifts arise naturally from character. He especially singles out Radhika Apte’s expressive performance and the emotional depth she gives Uma. [Read](https://www.vulture.com/article/review-sister-midnight-comedy-drama-and-horror-in-mumbai.html)
- **IndieWire**, Proma Khosla (B+): Khosla praises the film as a confident, original dark comedy with a humorous and human heart. She singles out Radhika Apte’s commanding, largely wordless performance and the expressive cinematography. [Read](https://www.indiewire.com/criticism/movies/sister-midnight-movie-review-1235060156/)
- **Little White Lies**, Anton Bitel (3/4/4): Bitel finds the film a droll, strange delight that resists conventional narrative expectations. He praises its playful horror references and its celebration of marginalised oddballs. [Read](https://lwlies.com/reviews/sister-midnight)
- **The Guardian**, Wendy Ide (4/5): Ide finds the film wildly audacious, macabre and immensely entertaining, despite noting that not every creative risk pays off. She particularly praises Radhika Apte’s endlessly expressive physical performance as Uma. [Read](https://www.theguardian.com/film/2025/mar/16/sister-midnight-review-karan-kandhari-radhika-apte-marriage-gone-wrong-mumbai-black-comedy)
- **Time Out**, Hanna Flint (4/5): The review presents the film as a feral, feminist fable with a delectable, vampiric edge. It singles out the film’s bite as a key strength. [Read](https://www.timeout.com/movies/sister-midnight-review-2024)
- **Screen Daily**, Wendy Ide (75/100, inferred): The accessible text presents the film positively, calling Radhika Apte sensational. It singles out her performance in the dark Mumbai-set comedy. [Read](https://www.screendaily.com/reviews/sister-midnight-cannes-review/5193434.article)
- **Los Angeles Times**, Robert Abele (68/100, inferred): Abe­le finds the film captivating and mischievously inventive, though its episodic unpredictability prevents its ideas from fully coalescing. He praises Radhika Apte’s commanding, often hilariously hapless performance and the film’s vivid visual curiosity. [Read](https://www.latimes.com/entertainment-arts/movies/story/2025-05-23/sister-midnight-review-radhika-apte-karan-kandhari)
- **Empire**, Yasmin Omar (60/100, inferred): Omar finds the debut engaging and daring, but overstuffed and uneven. She praises Kandhari’s bold mid-film shift while criticizing the inconsistent characterization that follows. [Read](https://www.empireonline.com/movies/reviews/sister-midnight/)
- **Sight and Sound** (60/100, inferred): The critic finds the film visually inventive and witty, but says its picture-making sometimes overwhelms its ideas. They praise its lush imagery and sharp eye for absurdity, while faulting the superficial use of hijras and an underpowered final stretch. [Read](https://www.bfi.org.uk/sight-and-sound/reviews/sister-midnight-lush-hallucinatory-journey-through-arranged-marriage)
- **Variety**, Siddhant Adlakha (50/100, inferred): The critic finds the film initially enrapturing but ultimately overcommitted to its style, with its bold ideas losing force. They praise Chhaya Kadam’s performance and the inventive stop-motion imagery, while criticizing the later genre turns as emotionally and tonally incongruous. [Read](https://variety.com/2024/film/reviews/sister-midnight-review-1236016966/)
- **Eye for Film**, Jennie Kermode (85/100, inferred): Kermode finds the film vivid, absorbing, and worth seeking out. She particularly praises Radhika Apte’s intense performance and the film’s carefully composed visuals, colour, and sound. [Read](https://www.eyeforfilm.co.uk/review/sister-midnight-2024-film-review-by-jennie-kermode)
- **Paste**, Jesse Hassenger (8.0/10): Hassenger calls the film one of the year’s best so far, praising its strange, transfixing blend of dark comedy and identity themes. He singles out Radhika Apte’s near-feral performance and the vibrant cinematography of its urban nightscapes. [Read](https://www.pastemagazine.com/movies/karan-kandhari/sister-midnight-movie-review-2025-radtika-apte)
- **The Skinny**, Stefania Sarrubba (★★★): The review calls the film a rebellious, spirited debut with plenty of bite, despite thin cohesion and occasional derivativeness. It praises the lively, eclectic soundtrack that accompanies Uma’s increasingly surreal experiences. [Read](https://www.theskinny.co.uk/film/new-releases/sister-midnight-2025)

## Details

- **Director:** Karan Kandhari
- **Director:** Karan Kandhari
- **Writer:** Karan Kandhari
- **Cinematography:** Sverre Sørdal
- **Editor:** Napoleon Stratogiannakis
- **Music:** Paul Banks
- **Production design:** Shruti Gupte
- **Producer:** Alastair Clark, Anna Griffin, Alan McAlex
- **Cast:** Radhika Apte as Uma; Ashok Pathak as Gopal; Chhaya Kadam as Sheetal; Smita Tambe as Reshma; Navya Sawant as Aditi; Dev Raaz as Ramu; Chaitanya Solankar as Sanjay; Suhaas Ahuja as Doctor
- **Runtime:** 1h 47m
- **First release (France):** 19 May 2024
- **Genres:** Comedy, Drama
- **Trailer:** https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=g2hiY3SNplw

## Where to watch in Colombia

Not streaming, renting or buying in Colombia at the last check.

Also available in: GB, IN, US. Add `?region=XX` to this URL for another country.

## If you liked this

- *The Lunchbox* (2013), Fi1m 75: For another Mumbai story attentive to loneliness and the awkwardness of connection. — [Fi1m page](https://film.one/film/the-lunchbox.md)
- *A Girl Walks Home Alone at Night* (2014): Another nocturnal outsider film where music and strangeness make persuasive companions.
- *Daisies* (1966), Fi1m 85: For unruly women, physical mischief and little patience with respectable behaviour. — [Fi1m page](https://film.one/film/daisies.md)
- *The Match Factory Girl* (1990): A quieter, colder account of frustration, told with equally economical expressions.
- *House* (1977): For the appetite for visual invention, with considerably fewer restraints.

---
© Fi1m Ltd. Written by AI under a human editor; checked against sources before publication. Quote with attribution and a link to the canonical URL. Canonical: https://film.one/film/sister-midnight