Lust Stories 3 Review: Four Acclaimed Directors, Four Shades Of Desire, One Addictive Anthology
Rating: 4/5 ⭐️ ⭐️ ⭐️ ⭐️
Two instalments in, Lust Stories has already established what the franchise stands for. The third chapter doesn’t try to reinvent the formula completely. Instead, it does something more useful: it gives four filmmakers the freedom to interpret desire in their own way.
The result is an anthology that moves between uncomfortable, funny, emotional and quirky territory.
Vikramaditya Motwane’s segment, starring Radhika Apte, Konkona Sensharma, Vijay Varma and Abhishek Sharma, is perhaps the most daring in terms of its premise. The subject of husband swapping is not an easy one, but the Korean fiction-inspired treatment gives the story an unusual quality. The cast brings enough nuance to ensure that the story doesn’t become just about its provocative premise.
Kiran Rao brings the fun. Gurfateh Pirzada and Sana Thampi find themselves in a story involving drugs, money and deception. It has the feel of a classic con story, but keeps adding new turns. An interesting twist comes as a particularly enjoyable surprise.
Then there is Shakun Batra’s story, where Ali Fazal and Radhika Madan deal with the less glamorous realities of relationships. Marriage, lust, therapy, parental pressure and divorce become part of a larger emotional mess. The segment works because it understands that relationships are rarely black and white.
Vishal Bhardwaj’s 1987-set story offers perhaps the biggest change of atmosphere. Aditi Rao Hydari, Sidharth and Gajraj Rao are part of a story about sex education that uses its period setting effectively. The references to Nux Vomica and Belladonna are quirky touches that add to the segment’s individuality.
That is ultimately the charm of Lust Stories 3. It doesn’t ask all four stories to be the same. One may make you uncomfortable, another may make you laugh, another may make you think about relationships, while another simply surprises you.
Verdict: Lust Stories 3 is a confident continuation of a franchise that has found its strength in variety. The four stories explore desire, intimacy, attraction and personal choices without losing their individual identities. After Lust Stories 1 and 2, the third chapter shows that there is still plenty of room to keep this format going.
