What is the story about?
Lust Stories 3 is here, revealing a glimpse into the lives of a bunch of people who are caught up in the web of love, intimacy, marriage, and desire. On
September 9, Netflix released the highly awaited trailer of the third installment of its flagship anthology, roping in four acclaimed directors and a stellar cast for some fresh stories. Vikramaditya Motwane, Kiran Rao, Shakun Batra and Vishal Bhardwaj assemble, promising a mix of humour, awkward moments, emotional tension and surprise turns. The movie stars Radhika Apte, Konkona Sen Sharma, Aditi Rao Hydari, Radhika Madan, Sana Thampi, Vijay Varma, Abhishek Banerjee, Siddharth, Ali Fazal and Gurfateh Pirzada. The over 2-minute trailer introduces several characters, many of them with relationships that are anything but simple, amid four interconnected stories of desire and its consequences.
Aditi Rao Hydari's candle analogy takes centre stage
One of the most striking moments of the trailer has to be from Aditi Rao Hydari, whose character uses an unusual analogy while talking about female desire. "You can't treat women like light bulbs which you can just switch on and off," she explains. According to her, women are like candles who not just burn, but also melt!
In another scene, her character discusses how vulgarity can be a matter of intention and aesthetics on the part of the writer. Her scenes with her husband, who's also her co-star, Siddharth, suggest a relationship of attraction, playfulness, and unresolved complications.
Radhika Madan, Ali Fazal on marital frustration
Another section is about Radhika Madan and Ali Fazal, who seem to be a married couple grappling with frustration and mismatched expectations. In one pointed exchange, Radhika tells Ali that if he wants returns, he has to invest. His reply, that he has already sacrificed his life by getting married, turns the conversation into a pointed commentary on the compromises and expectations of marriage. The trailer suggests that their story is about relationship tension and comedy, not just about marriage in the purely dramatic sense.
Konkona Sen Sharma and Radhika Apte deliver the comedy
The trailer also gives a glimpse of Konkona Sen Sharma, Abhishek Banerjee and Vijay Varma in another story, and their exchanges add a distinctly comic flavour to the anthology. The anthology also seems to depend heavily on misunderstandings and situational humour. In one sequence, Konkona tells Radhika Apte that they need to be prepared for "fireworks" when talking about what Min and Jin are doing. One of the lighter moments in the trailer is when Radhika swiftly points out that they are in Kandivali, not Korea.
Elsewhere, Gurfateh Pirzada and Sana Thampi are introduced as Karan and Lisa, who seem to have a storyline that plays with communication and language barriers.
Four directors, four visions of lust
The best thing about Lust Stories 3 is that it is a melting point of four different filmmaking voices. Vikramaditya Motwane, Kiran Rao, Shakun Batra and Vishal Bhardwaj have tackled relationships and desire from different perspectives. The four stories together plan to look at not only romantic relationships but also the things people keep hidden, imagine and have trouble saying.
Vikramaditya Motwane says Lust Stories 3 gave him "a chance to explore what happens when the comfort of everyday life begins to rub up against the desire for something unexpected." Meanwhile, Kiran Rao looks at how attraction can make simple decisions complicated and lead to unforeseen results. "Desire makes us curious, and sometimes willing to take chances we normally wouldn't," she says.
For Batra, the story's core is the emotional uncertainty in relationships. His segment explores how love, insecurity, attraction and frustration can all coexist without simple answers. He believes "the most interesting relationships are the ones where people don't quite know what they're feeling."
Bhardwaj's portion is about desire through imagination, self-expression and identity, and is focused on a character who begins to find her own voice. "There's humour, mischief and emotion in that journey," he feels.
Lust Stories 3 release date
Lust Stories 3 is the latest addition to Netflix's International Emmy-nominated anthology franchise. The new addition builds on the series' examination of contemporary relationships and features four filmmakers with varied styles of storytelling.
The anthology will premiere on Netflix on September 18, 2026.
