3 Stars (out of 4)
Watch Lust Stories 3 on Netflix
The latest entry in Netflix’s anthology series, Lust Stories 3 is an easy and fun watch, for the most part. Three of the short films by well-regarded directors fit the theme perfectly, while the fourth feels out of place. Overall, this is a light bit of entertainment with some really great acting from an impressive collection of performers.
Vikramaditya Motwane
Director Vikramaditya Motwane starts things off on a high note, thanks largely to his stellar cast. Paddy (Radhika Apte) and Shona (Konkona Sen Sharma) are best friends, co-workers, and neighbors. Both women feel like their marriages — Paddy’s to Hemant (Vijay Varma) and Shona’s to Debu (Abhishek Banerjee) — have lost their romantic sparks. Bold Shona proposes doing something they saw on a Hindi-dubbed Korean series that she and Paddy watch: swapping husbands.
Shy Paddy reluctantly agrees to try while the couples and their children are on vacation at a resort. The results are disastrous, of course, but in a funny way. Apte and Sen Sharma are hilarious throughout, carrying the short film almost entirely on their own. That’s not to put down Varma’s or Banerjee’s efforts, but the story’s focus is on the women, and they make the most of it. Sen Sharma’s delivery of the line “Us Kandivali women can’t have Korean dreams” is perfection.
Kiran Rao
Kiran Rao’s story follows two young, attractive people trying to find their footing in Mumbai. Lisa (Sana Thampi) is an apprentice nail technician, and Karan (Gurfateh Pirzada) delivers pizzas. He’s also got a side gig selling drugs. The two are immediately attracted to each other and begin a physical relationship. Of all the short films in the collection, this one features the most sex.
This is Thampi’s first acting role, but you’d never know it. She and Pirzada work well together showcasing the challenges of being young in an expensive city and trying to find joy where you can. Rao’s film takes some unexpected turns and is very entertaining as it explores the way lust makes some people do foolish things — but not everyone.
Shakun Batra
Shakun Batra’s film is the one that feels out of place in Lust Stories 3. Sailee (Radhikka Madan) and Varun (Ali Fazal) are getting divorced. Whenever they meet to hash out the details, it turns into an argument, which turns into sex. It’s a trope that doesn’t yield meaningful plot rewards, instead serving as the justification for including this segment in the anthology. The short film is just the main characters bickering until they find a way to discuss their problems constructively. This would’ve been better suited for Divorce Stories 3.
Vishal Bhardwaj
Given Vishal Bhardwaj’s fondness for literary adaptations, it’s fitting that he closes out the anthology with a tale of the written word’s power to inflame the senses. Aditi Rao Hydari plays Saira, a teacher and graduate student at a women’s university in Hyderabad in 1987. She’s married to Badru (Hydari’s real-life husband, Siddharth), a kind but clinical doctor. The young women Saira teaches are sex-obsessed, but their only familiarity with the subject comes through classical literature and the rare, illicit American romance novel. At her students’ encouragement, Saira writes her own erotic novel. It’s a hit with the girls… until it goes missing.
There’s something incredibly sweet about pairing a recently-married couple to perform in this story about romantic imagination. Whenever Saira imagines her dream lover, it’s Badru, but he’s traded his spectacles for sunglasses and replaced his clothes with a skimpy towel. Both actors are totally charming, as are the delightful supporting cast members. The requisite song sung by Rekha Bhardwaj is fun as well.
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