As a meditation on time, or colonialism, or national character, or on fashions in religion, philosophy, or medicine, or on the immutabilities of sex, Heat and Dust is as wise as it is unpretentious.

After 37 years, Heat and Dust stands up as an intelligent, ambitious, substantial picture - with flaws but also intriguing aspects that were perhaps not sufficiently understood at the time.

There's a whole lot of cathartic pain in Heat and Dust, if you know where to look for it.

This won't be remembered as one of Merchant Ivory's classics, but it's an enticing story beautifully rendered nonetheless, and one that won Jhabvala a BAFTA for her adapted screenplay.