Netflix has released the trailer for Lust Stories 3, the third installment of its International Emmy-nominated anthology, bringing four new stories exploring love, desire, attraction, marriage and complicated relationships. Directed by Vikramaditya Motwane, Kiran Rao, Shakun Batra and Vishal Bhardwaj, the film features Radhika Apte, Konkona Sen Sharma, Aditi Rao Hydari, Siddharth, Vijay Varma and a wider ensemble. Lust Stories 3 will premiere exclusively on Netflix on September 18.
The new installment continues the anthology format that has allowed different filmmakers to examine modern relationships through separate stories. Rather than following a single central plot, Lust Stories 3 moves between four distinct worlds, with each segment approaching desire and emotional connection from a different perspective. Netflix describes the stories as explorations of love, lust, relationships and repressed desire, with humour and emotional complications also playing an important role.
A major change this time is the directorial lineup. Motwane, Rao, Batra and Bhardwaj are all new additions to the franchise as directors, giving the third installment a different creative identity. Their four segments offer contrasting approaches to relationships while maintaining the anthology’s focus on the complicated, and sometimes humorous, ways people deal with intimacy and desire.
The cast adds another layer of interest. Aditi Rao Hydari and Siddharth appear together, bringing a real-life married couple to the screen in one of the anthology’s stories. Their pairing has emerged as one of the notable talking points around the trailer, although the film remains centred on its fictional characters and their individual emotional situations.
The installment also brings back two familiar faces from the franchise. Radhika Apte previously appeared in Anurag Kashyap’s segment in Lust Stories, which was released in 2018, while Vijay Varma featured in Sujoy Ghosh’s segment in Lust Stories 2, released in 2023. Their returns connect the new film to the anthology’s earlier chapters without making the new stories dependent on them.
Alongside the returning actors, the ensemble includes Radhika Madan, Sana Thampi, Abhishek Banerjee, Ali Fazal and Gurfateh Pirzada. The combination of established performers and newer faces gives the four stories a broad range of personalities and relationship dynamics.
The trailer keeps much of the individual plots under wraps while revealing the emotional confusion at their centre. Awkward conversations, attraction, marital tension, misunderstandings, humour and heartbreak all feature across the footage. One striking sequence sees Aditi Rao Hydari’s character compare women to candles rather than light bulbs while discussing the way desire works. Another thread involving Konkona Sen Sharma and Radhika Apte brings a lighter comic tone to the anthology.
The creative team also features an interesting writing collaboration. Sumukhi Suresh has co-written Motwane’s segment with Avinash Sampath, adding another distinctive voice to a project built around four different storytelling styles. The combination of filmmakers, writers and performers is central to the new installment’s identity.
The trailer suggests that desire will not be treated as a straightforward concept. Across the four stories, characters question expectations, struggle to communicate, make unexpected choices and confront feelings they may not fully understand. The thematic connection allows each director to establish a separate tone while keeping the anthology cohesive. For viewers familiar with the first two films, the continuity comes through recurring themes rather than an ongoing storyline.
With its trailer now released, Lust Stories 3 sets up another collection of stories that examines relationships without presenting them as simple or predictable. The four directors, returning performers and new faces create a fresh combination, while the trailer points to a balance of humour, desire and emotional conflict. Audiences can watch Lust Stories 3 exclusively on Netflix from September 18.
Watch Lust Stories 3 Trailer:
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