Dictionary.com defines LUST as:

1. intense sexual desire or appetite.
2. to have a yearning or desire; have a strong or excessive craving (often followed by for or after).

LUST is the subject matter of the new Netflix 4 story anthology. It is a follow up on the previous Lust Stories that released around 5 years back.

Each of these stories have a run time of around half an hour each which range from fab to blah !! Here is the run-down of these 4 stories:

Made for Each Other

Director : R Balki’s

Starring : Mrunal Thakur as Veda, Neena Gupta as Veda’s grandmother, Angad Bedi as Arjun amongst others.

It’s about Veda and Arjun who are all set to tie the nuptials and the dadi insisting that they make out first to see if they are sexually compatible, in tune with each other sexual needs and discussing her heydays with Veda. This leaves the family aghast but the octogenarian has her away and the couple check-in to hotels to test their compatibility.

On the story board, it is an interesting concept but I have a problem with the dialogue and equating orgasms with Mt. Fuji. Which dadi no matter how cool she is talks the way she does? It feels cringy and forced in order to make the dadi look woke.

Neena Gupta is dependable as always but she gets burdened by a part that does not do justice to her. The rest of the cast play their parts well.

The Mirror

Director: Konkona Sen Sharma

Starring: Tillotama Shome as Isheeta, Amruta Subhash as Seema

Isheeta a designer living alone in Mumbai and has a house help – Seema who manages her home. One day she comes home early only to see Seema make out on her bed. Its later that she realises that the person Seema is making out is none other than Seema’s own husband. Their sexual act makes her voyeuristic and she derives gratification from watching them do it. Seema over the period realises that her act is being watched thru a mirror by her employer but continues to act ignorant. A broken item breaks this silence and they both i.e. Isheeta and Seema accuse each other of unfairly using each other for their own benefits. 

This is my favourite part of the anthology. Tillotama Shome is brilliant as the corporate woman completely dependent on her house help and someone longing for intimacy which she derives while watching her house help do it.

Amruta Subhash an actor who is now type cast as the typical Marathi local is fabulous. Besides the voyeurism the story deals with lack of spaces even for a married couple in Mumbai. In a world of financial independence, the dating apps there is this lonely life of a corporate worker and a thriving ecosystem of house help to have their home running.

Sex with the Ex 

Director: Sujoy Ghosh

Starring: Tamannaah Bhatia as Shanti, Vijay Varma as Vijay Chouhan, Mukti Mohan as Anita etc.

Vijay a business owner with his philandering ways, a wife at home looking after his kids has a chance meeting with his ex wife Shanti. Shanti had left her married life and an accident brings Vijay once again to her doorsteps.

The story is set in a LaLa Land (watch it and you will know) with a twist in the end.

This is the weakest link of the 4 stories besides the acting chops of a creepy Vijay Varma and the oomph of Tamannah Bhatia it fails to serve its purpose. 

Tilchatta 

Director:  Amit Sharma

Starring: Kajol as Devyani Singh, Kumud Mishra as Suraj Singh, Zeeshan Nadaf as Ankur Singh etc.

A dilapidated haveli, an erstwhile ruler of a small fiefdom, a lonely abused wife looking for a better future for her son and seeking to avenge for her condition – This is what Tilchatta is all about.

While watching this story it bought back memories of Satyajit Ray’s Jalsaghar. A Zamindar holding on to a lifestyle and era that he can neither be part of nor that he can now afford.

In this Suraj Singh is decadent, morally dubious, sustaining on mortgaging his property, telling the whole world that the good times are coming where none seems to appear.

Revenge seeking Devyani Singh is forced to live with an abusive husband and has a perfect plan to make her husband pay for his sins.

Kumud Mishra as lecherous abusive husband is great. I mean one could never imagine him to be that and on the other hand it gets difficult watching Kajol as a timid, docile, dutiful wife. She plays her part earnestly but there is something

I would recommend you to also go watch Lust Stories 1 yet again if you haven’t already.