Critics Review:
There is a certain expectation that comes with the Lust Stories franchise. Four filmmakers, four stories, complicated relationships, desire, intimacy and a fair amount of experimentation. With Lust Stories 3, the names attached to the project are arguably more exciting than the stories they are telling. Vikramaditya Motwane, Kiran Rao, Shakun Batra and Vishal Bhardwaj come together with an impressive ensemble featuring Radhika Apte, Konkona Sen Sharma, Vijay Varma, Abhishek Banerjee, Ali Fazal, Radhika Madan, Aditi Rao Hydari and Siddharth.
The result is watchable, well-acted and occasionally entertaining. But there is one question that keeps coming back throughout the anthology: haven’t we seen these stories before?
Four Stories, Familiar Ideas
Each segment approaches desire from a slightly different direction. Motwane explores the restlessness of married women and the temptation of stepping outside conventional boundaries. Kiran Rao plays with attraction, deception and a relationship that is built around ulterior motives. Shakun Batra returns to his familiar territory of dysfunctional relationships, resentment and emotional intimacy, while Vishal Bhardwaj takes desire into a period setting where a woman’s imagination becomes her escape.
On paper, there is enough variety here. In execution, however, the ideas often feel like variations of conversations Indian cinema has already had about marriage, female desire and sexual freedom.
That is perhaps the biggest disappointment with Lust Stories 3. The franchise was initially exciting because it made conversations around sex and desire feel unusual within mainstream Hindi cinema. By the third instalment, the novelty has inevitably worn off. The stories still have things to say, but the way they say them rarely feels revolutionary. The predictability of several arcs even while appreciating the anthology’s exploration of intimacy and desire is disappointing.
Great Actors, But Where Is the Fresh Lens?
The performances are undoubtedly praise-worthy. This is an ensemble that knows exactly how to hold a frame.
Konkona Sen Sharma and Radhika Apte bring tremendous conviction to their friendship and marital frustrations, while Vijay Varma and Abhishek Banerjee make the husband-swapping premise considerably more entertaining. Aditi Rao Hydari gets a wonderfully playful role and embraces its eccentricity, while Siddharth gets to explore a lighter, more flamboyant side.
But even when the actors are doing something interesting, the material rarely gives them a truly new emotional landscape.
And that is where Lust Stories 3 starts feeling like a missed opportunity. When filmmakers of this calibre come together with actors of this calibre, you expect the camera to discover something you haven’t already seen. Instead, the performances sometimes feel fresher than the stories themselves. The craft is polished, but the ideas are familiar.
Ali Fazal and Radhika Madan Truly Shine
The segment or rather the pair that worked best is Shakun Batra’s story featuring Ali Fazal and Radhika Madan.
As a divorcing couple who cannot seem to separate emotionally or physically, the two actors share a chemistry that makes their dysfunction believable. There is anger, frustration, attraction and unresolved affection constantly fighting for space. Unlike some of the other stories, this one manages to make the physical relationship feel like an extension of the emotional mess rather than simply the premise.
Fazal and Madan truly shine as a pair. Their performances give the segment a lived-in quality and make you invest in two people who are clearly wrong for each other in several ways, yet cannot completely let go.
A Frivolous Take on the Classics
There is also an interesting contradiction in Lust Stories 3. The anthology clearly has an awareness of cinema, literature and the traditions it is playing with. Some segments deliberately embrace heightened humour, nostalgia and theatricality.
But at times, it feels less like reinterpretation and more like a frivolous take on ideas that deserve greater depth.
The Vishal Bhardwaj segment, for instance, has a distinct period flavour and an unusually playful treatment of female desire. Aditi Rao Hydari throws herself into it and makes the material work far better than it perhaps should. Yet, the story itself remains predictable.
Similarly, Kiran Rao’s segment has an interesting premise but does not develop it enough to leave a lasting impact.
When the Talent Outshines the Material
Lust Stories 3 is not a bad anthology. In fact, it is fairly entertaining in parts and certainly benefits from its performances and the distinctive voices of its four directors. But that almost makes its shortcomings more frustrating.
There is nothing wrong with revisiting familiar stories about desire, marriage and intimacy. The problem is spending so much talent and money on stories that do not seem to have discovered a new way of having those conversations.
Final Verdict
Lust Stories 3 looks good, is performed beautifully and has enough moments to keep you watching. But the franchise has now reached a point where familiarity is no longer enough. It is an impressive collection of talent retelling old and familiar stories, when it could have been the collection that surprised us.
Overall rating: 2/5
By: Anushka Singhal
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