Lust Stories 3
Romance, Drama (Hindi)
Through four bite-sized yet emotionally resonant films, the anthology once again explores lust, love, relationships, and repressed desire, offering fresh perspectives on intimacy, longing, and human connection in all their complexity. (more…)
Guild Reviews by Film
Lust Stories 3
Romance, Drama (Hindi)
Through four bite-sized yet emotionally resonant films, the anthology once again explores lust, love, relationships, and repressed desire, offering fresh perspectives on intimacy, longing, and human connection in all their complexity.
Cast:
Radhika Apte, Konkona Sen Sharma, Vijay Varma, Abhishek Banerjee, Ali Fazal, Radhikka Madan, Aditi Rao Hydari, Siddharth, Gurfateh Pirzada, Sana Thampi
Director:
Vikramaditya Motwane, Kiran Rao, Shakun Batra, Vishal Bhardwaj
Writer:
Kiran Rao, Tanaji Dasgupta, Avinash Sampath, Sumukhi Suresh, Shakun Batra, Sameeha Sabnis, Ashwathi Namboodiri, Nitesh Bhatia, Utkarshini Vashishtha, Vishal Bhardwaj
Sat, September 19 2026
A mirror to modern relationships, the franchise’s third instalment sheds its past shock value for the disturbing terrain of emotional isolation
If the birth of Lust Stories was a shout for liberation, a tearing down of the velvet curtains that long hid Indian intimacy, then the third iteration is the echo. Helmed by a new set of original voices — Shakun Batra, Vikramaditya Motwane, Kiran Rao, and Vishal Bhardwaj — and bolstered by an ensemble of actors who translate subtext through the vocabulary of body language, it does not seek to shock, nor does it carry the heavy burden of breaking taboos. It treats desire not as a provocative statement, but as a messy mirror. The four-part anthology shows how physical proximity often masks isolation in modern relationships. It shows how lust is weaponised, bargained with, or surrendered to. In the earlier films of the franchise, the stories followed a clear arc of liberation, a character realising their worth or claiming their pleasure. Here, within the recognisable OTT beats, the liberation is rarely external. In three segments, intimacy is readily available, but real emotional safety is scarce.
Sat, September 19 2026
Lust Stories 3 sticks to the format of the previous films in the franchise, keeping female desire at the core of all the films. The anthology film has four distinctive stories which are propelled by great performances.
Lust Stories, right from the beginning, when the first part was released in 2020, raised eyebrows. Since then, several other similar films and series have come up on OTT- all exploring female sexual desires- some landed, some did not, but the charm of Lust Stories and subsequently of Lust Stories 2 has had a different effect on the audience. How many mainstream filmmakers have attempted to explore what women want and ultimately got it right? In Lust Stories 3, filmmakers Vikramaditya Motwane, Kiran Rao, Shakun Batra and Vishal Bhardwaj speak of Lust, an emotion that often brings out the best and worst in any human being.
Sat, September 19 2026
One thing I genuinely appreciated about all four films is their intent to showcase the length and breadth of Hindi cinema, and its varying aesthetic, refusing to paint Bollywood as a monolith.
Netflix’s Lust Stories is the only anthology to have made it to its third season, and there might be good reason. For a society as repressed as ours, sex brings out adequate intrigue on the part of the audience, assuring a base viewership. Meanwhile, by constantly shuffling filmmakers, the interpretations remain fresh, and sex becomes a capsule to be filled with commentary on inequities, female desire, and a rarely spoken language in an otherwise verbose film industry. Lust Stories 3 features a line-up of directors, which audiences will forever be curious about: Kiran Rao, Vikramaditya Motwane, Shakun Batra and Vishal Bhardwaj. The results are middling to positive. But one thing I genuinely appreciated about all four films, is their intent to showcase the length and breadth of Hindi cinema, and its varying aesthetic, refusing to paint Bollywood as a monolith – which it has begun to seem like, given its over-dependence on star-led spectacles. Also, I enjoyed the music in all films, complimenting the sensibility of the respective mise en scene.
Daayra
Crime, Drama (Hindi)
Raman, who has had a shady record with staged encounters and police brutality, finds himself cornered as Ajooni challenges him on every step.
Cast:
Kareena Kapoor Khan, Prithviraj Sukumaran, Kshitee Jog, Jitendra Joshi, Biswapati Sarkar, Sandesh Kulkarni
Director:
Meghna Gulzar
Writer:
Meghna Gulzar, Yash Keswani, Sima Agarwal
Sat, September 19 2026
A gritty examination of the cost of instant retribution, the police procedural, anchored by a fantastic Prithviraj Sukumaran and an unusually off-key Kareena Kapoor Khan, probes the grey area where the line between justice and vengeance blurs.
Coming at a time when society is increasingly seduced by the idea of instant, extra-judicial justice, Meghna Gulzar’s Daayra takes a diagnostic look at the rot within the body politic where ‘encounters’ are routinely packaged and sold as desperate acts of self-defence, and a frustrated public gleefully buys it for the wheel of justice is excruciatingly slow. Heavily informed by the details and fallout of the 2019 Hyderabad case, the film takes away the sensationalised, high-octane tropes synonymous with Bollywood police procedurals that have long normalised law enforcement officers becoming a law unto themselves.
Sat, September 19 2026
A morally ambitious crime drama where Kareena Kapoor Khan and Prithviraj Sukumaran confront justice, vengeance, and the uneasy boundaries separating lawful duty from conviction.
Do the ends ever truly justify the means? Can justice be meted out by those sworn merely to enforce the law? When two starkly contrasting police officers are drawn into the investigation of a young girl’s brutal disappearance and murder, these questions—among several others—confront the edifice of law with unsettlingly plausible answers. Meghna Gulzar’s latest offering, Daayra, starring Kareena Kapoor Khan and Prithviraj Sukumaran as the two investigating officers, reopens an age-old debate: the tension between law and morality, between justice and vengeance. The narrative unfolds against a harrowing crime scene, framed by a mother’s desperate plea for justice.
Fri, September 18 2026
Daayra may not have all the answers, but it makes you ask the right questions.
Every time Meghna Gulzar makes a film, there is excitement among film lovers. She has given us films like Talvar and Raazi, and she has consistently chosen stories that make you think beyond the film itself. So naturally, expectations are high with Daayra. The trailer tells you pretty much what to expect — one crime, two senior cops, two very different ways of looking at justice, and a clash of ideologies. The film begins with DCP Raman Kumar, played by Prithviraj Sukumaran, being celebrated after an encounter in which he and his team kill four men accused of raping and murdering a young girl. Raman is a cop who believes in putting together a strong team, giving an investigation his time and dedication, and doing whatever it takes to solve a case.
Vibe
Action, Comedy, Drama (Hindi)
Two inseparable friends' ordinary, unassuming lives spiral into an unpredictable, high-energy adventure that pushes their survival instincts and friendship to the limit.
Cast:
Preity Zinta, Kunal Kemmu, Sparsh Shrivastava, Vanshika Dhir, Dinesh Lal Yadav Nirahua, Yashpal Sharma, Sharmila Tagore, Aditya Kulshreshtha
Director:
Kunal Kemmu
Writer:
Kunal Kemmu
Sat, September 19 2026
“Kaise soldier banunga? Bobby Deol hoon kya main?” Hardik (Kunal Kemmu) wails at Madam H (Preity Zinta) in Vibe, and the line does what most Hindi spy films refuse to do: it cheerfully winks at its own tropes. From that micro-meta gag here, Kemmu, directing himself, builds a legitimate ode to the ’90s actioner in a later scene, played for joy rather than piety. Fun is not a garnish here; it is the method. And I enjoyed watching almost everyone have some. I could only feel bad for Deol, who had none in the recent Alpha, a cousin film that took itself far too seriously, as if seriousness alone could give it a pulse. Alpha treated its serum like doctrine. Vibe lets Hardik and Bhagirath “Bugs” (Sparsh Shrivastava) pocket something similar and keep walking. Few questions asked, which is both the joke and the design. They are corporate slaves, one a buffoon, the other a nerd, who become accidental spies after Hardik’s planetarium date with his crush Kareena (Vanshika Dhir) goes sideways. Romance is the door he knocks on. Espionage is what he falls into.
Fri, September 18 2026
'Vibe' is unapologetically The Family Man-coded in its espionage packaging, spy apparatus, and stakes
The customary opening stretch of production company logos and streaming partners and marketing partners, and so on, is accompanied by playful voiceover commentary from the film’s lead character, poking fun at what all the logos and titles mean and why every film must open with long stretches of them. Vibe is Kemmu’s second film as director after the clutter-breaking Madgaon Express, which remains one of the rare worthwhile (and consistently hilarious) comedies to emerge from Hindi cinema in the last few years. At a time when the comedy genre itself has become little more than a lazy punchline of minimal effort and squeaky sound effects in the name of “slapstick” (Housefull 5, Bhooth Bangla, Hai Jawani Toh Ishq Hona Hai, Dhamaal 4), Madgaon Express was a much-needed reminder of the sheer effort, craft, writing and performances that go into cracking a laugh-a-minute comedy for the big screen.
Fri, September 18 2026
Termite
(Urdu)
Shaunak Sen’s follow-up to the Academy Award–nominated documentary All That Breathes is an evocative drama set in the vibrant neighbourhoods of Old Delhi, where the routined lives of two middle-aged termite exterminators are about to drastically change when one of them receives an unexpected marriage proposal.
Cast:
Faisal Malik, Vipin Sharma, Shilpa Shukla, Valavane Koumarane, Imran Khan
Director:
Shaunak Sen
Writer:
Shaunak Sen
Fri, September 18 2026
TIFF 2026 | The Oscar-nominated All That Breathes director mines the creeping loneliness of a termite exterminator in Old Delhi.
Once again, the alleys of Delhi hum their ache, regrets and yearnings in Shaunak Sen’s debut fiction outing, Termite. It’s a short film as if Sen is testing the ground before hoisting his flag on it. Like his Oscar-nominated 2022 breakout doc, All That Breathes, the fiction short is also alive and porous to an ecological world, the fellow non-inhuman inhabitants we share our lives with, marginality and the deep curl of thoughts and fears you swat away in recesses.
Sat, September 12 2026
In competition at the 2026 Toronto International Film Festival (TIFF), the Oscar-nominated documentarian’s short returns to the bylanes of old Delhi.
Termite, a 30-minute short, is documentary maker Shaunak Sen’s first fiction film. But it’s hard to tell the difference. He treats life as the introverted ally of storytelling; his nonfiction often designs the truth of an invisibilised India. It finds a controlled language to present what already exists. While Cities of Sleep traced the gloomy lyricism of Delhi’s insurgent sleeper communities, the Oscar-nominated All That Breathes shadowed two Muslim brothers who run a bird clinic in old Delhi. The camera — steady, studied, often static — reframes the people as characters, spaces as settings, and ecological relationships as cultural metaphors. Termite looks like it’s ‘following’ two men in the capital, too. A Tamil migrant, Ajith (Valavane Koumarane), shares a rooftop room with his Muslim friend, Saud (Faisal Malik); they spend tired evenings drinking tea and passively watching television.
Resident Evil
Horror, Science Fiction, Adventure (English)
A hapless medical courier fights for his life amid an outbreak of a deadly mutagenic virus in an isolated mountain town.
Cast:
Austin Abrams, Zach Cherry, Kali Reis, Paul Walter Hauser, Johnno Wilson, Shaun W. Loeser, Zach Cregger, Emily Piggford, Will Merrick, Zoé Bellas
Director:
Zach Cregger
Writer:
Shay Hatten, Zach Cregger
Fri, September 18 2026
A drive through icy desolation on the edges of Raccoon City boasts one of the year’s most arresting movie openings.
With Resident Evil, Zach Cregger builds one of the year’s most pin-sharp, nerve-rattling cinematic openings. It lurches between extremes amid an expert orchestration of unpredictability. Bryan (Austin Abrams) is a medical courier who’s having issues with his girlfriend, Michelle, over having kids. She wants an honest, direct conversation, but his deliveries keep coming in the way. He’s not sure if he’s ready for such a big change as parenthood. The film opens at a hospital. Amidst his efforts to get a delivery signed, he’s tapped to ferry a critical bag to Raccoon City. He’s cautioned that the location is far and the terrain snowy. But the pay is double. In just a beat, he agrees. However, shortly after, he realises things might be way harder than it seemed.
Happy Journey
Family, Comedy, Adventure (Telugu)
A group of seven women across generations set off on a spontaneous European getaway, leaving their everyday lives behind. Amid the chaos, laughter and picturesque landscapes, the journey becomes an unexpected celebration of freedom and friendship.
Cast:
Aamani, Jhansi, Annapoorna, Vamshidhar Kosgi Goud, Paayal Radhakrishna, Jinisha Alishetty, Sunaina Badam, Roopa Srinivas, Ravi Shiva Teja, Prudhvi Dandamudi
Director:
Abhiramm Naidu
Writer:
Abhiramm Naidu
Fri, September 18 2026
Directed by Abhiramm Naidu, this European road trip Telugu film means well but struggles to shake off its old-fashioned undertones
The prospect of a bright, colourful Telugu film about women across age groups and walks of life bonding over a European holiday is like music to the ears. The sheer rarity of such a narrative in an industry that often functions like an all-boys club can make some of us root for it instantly. After all, an all-woman road film offers abundant room to unpack how these characters view the world while indulging in some mischief. Director Abhiramm Naidu’s film is packed with contrasting characters wanting to set themselves free and forget the voids in their lives, albeit temporarily.
Enna Vilai
Drama, Thriller (Tamil)
A humble fisherman from Rameswaram lives a quiet life with his family until he finds a gold pendant washed ashore. What initially seems like a blessing soon turns into a nightmare when false accusations threaten his peace and dignity, forcing him to stand up against a powerful system.
Cast:
Nimisha Sajayan, Karunas, Vijayalakshmi Veeramani, Kamalesh Jegan, Chethan Cheenu, Mohan Raman, Kavithalayaa Krishnan, Swaminathan, Nizhalgal Ravi, Y. G. Mahendran
Director:
Sajeev Pazhoor
Writer:
Sajeev Pazhoor
Fri, September 18 2026
A promising premise and a reliable Karunas are let down by clumsy staging and a bloated, repetitive courtroom drama
Sajeev Pazhoor, the first-time director of Enna Vilai, is no ordinary writer. He’s written the new-age Malayalam classic Thondimuthalum Drikshakshiyum and the directors who have worked on Sajeev’s scripts include Dileesh Pothan, G Prajith (the director of Oru Vadakkan Selfie) and the master Shaji N Karun. Sajeev has also made dozens of documentaries and short films before turning director with Enna Vilai, a Tamil drama set in Rameshwaram. What shines through, even at a premise level, is this writer’s mind and a short story-like quality that could have been made into a better film.
Waiting Hai
Comedy, Drama, Crime (Hindi)
Sugam joins the RPF and investigates a Tatkal scam. Hamza and Mama turn booking software into a business, facing rivalry and betrayal. Sugam arrests the agents and tracks Hamza, ending the scam before his escape to Dubai.
Cast:
Divyendu Sharma, Bhuvan Arora, Kumud Mishra, Vijay Maurya, Harshita Shekhar Gaur, Sunita Rajwar, Dayashankar Pandey, Yashpal Sharma
Director:
Sameer Vidwans
Fri, September 18 2026
Sugam Mishra is a newly married railway cop who has just joined duty, juggling pressures at home and at work. He finds a mentor and a father figure in his senior. Afroz Hamza, a hacking enthusiast nursing a heartbreak in college, takes to crime for a living – joining hands with his uncle to do the dirty backend work for travel agents. While most films try to milk Divyendu Sharma’s Mirzapur image, a show like Waiting Hai actually showcases his range. As an earnest, newly-married man in his 20s starting a new job, he mirrors the character’s rebellion and idealism with honesty. Bhuvan Arora is decent as the invisible hacker wronged by the system. One of the more moving portrayals comes from Kumud Mishra as Sugam’s senior on the verge of retirement. The supporting cast – Vijay Maurya, Harshita Gaur, Sunita Rajwar and Dayashankar Pandey – deliver the goods.
Gandhari
Action, Drama, Thriller (Hindi)
When a mother loses her eyesight and her daughter in a kidnapping, she takes matters into her own hands to hunt down those responsible.
Cast:
Taapsee Pannu, Ishwak Singh, Mita Vashisht, Swastika Mukherjee, Chhaya Kadam, Jatin Sarna, Prashant Narayanan, Chandan Roy, Vishwanath Chatterjee, Priti Shroff
Director:
Devashish Makhija
Writer:
Kanika Dhillon
Fri, September 18 2026
பானிக்கு ஏற்படும் பார்வைக் குறைபாடு, அந்தச் சூழலிலும் குழந்தையைத் தேடி ஓடும் கதை சுவாரஸ்ய லைனில் செல்கிறது. குழந்தை கடத்தல் மாஃபியா பற்றிய விவரிப்பும் ஆராய்ச்சியும் படத்துக்கு ஆழமானதொரு நிறத்தைத் தருகின்றன.
பானியும் (டாப்ஸி) அவருடைய கணவரும் ரயிலில் சென்றுகொண்டிருக்கிறார்கள். திடீரென ஜாய்புரா என்ற ஊரில் அவர்களுடைய குழந்தையைக் கடத்திவிடுகிறார்கள். குழந்தையைக் காப்பாற்ற ஓடிச் செல்கையில் பானிக்குத் தலையில் அடிபட்டு கண்பார்வையில் பிரச்னை ஏற்படுகிறது. ஜாய்புராவில் இப்படியான குழந்தைக் கடத்தல் அதிகமாக நடப்பது பற்றியும், அதை நிகழ்த்தும் நெட்வொர்க் பற்றியும் பானி அறிந்துகொள்கிறார். அதன் பிறகு, பார்வைப் பிரச்னை சரியானாலும், பார்வைச் சவால்கொண்டவர் என்றே தனது அடையாளத்தை வைத்துக்கொண்டு ஜாய்புராவில் தங்கி, தன் குழந்தையைத் தீவிரமாகத் தேடுகிறார். இறுதியில் தன் குழந்தையைக் கண்டுபிடித்தாரா, இந்தக் கடத்தல் குழுவின் பின்னணி என்ன, ஜாய்புராவில் அவை எப்படி ஊடுருவியிருக்கின்றன என்கிற முடிச்சுகளை அவிழ்ப்பதே நெட்ஃப்ளிக்ஸ் தளத்தில் வந்திருக்கும் இந்த ‘காந்தாரி’யின் கதை. (தமிழ் டப்பிங் உண்டு).
Sat, September 12 2026
A land that worships the divine feminine yet treats its women poorly. This is a paradox that rings tragic and true both in reality and in the fictional world of Gandhari. The film is set in Joypurra, an unsettling place where the disappearance of young girls has been frighteningly normalized. The story opens by establishing a happy family of three. Taapsee Pannu and Ishwak Singh play a husband and wife and parents to a young girl Mishti. When Mishti suddenly goes missing the narrative dives straight into the conflict.
Sun, September 6 2026
Haiwaan
Crime, Thriller (Hindi)
A retired judge faces difficulty keeping his daughter safe from a convict he imprisoned. Later, when he gets murdered, a man with visual impairment who was loyal to him tries to defend his daughter.
Cast:
Akshay Kumar, Saif Ali Khan, Boman Irani, Shriya Pilgaonkar, Saiyami Kher, Rajpal Yadav, Sharib Hashmi, Rajesh Sharma, Manoj Joshi, Asrani
Director:
Priyadarshan
Wed, September 16 2026
An intriguing psychological thriller is overwhelmed by Akshay Kumar’s star persona, implausible action, and a screenplay that sacrifices restraint for spectacle.
Some thrillers are so absorbing that they persuade us to surrender logic at the door and simply follow the action wherever it takes us. A good mystery, particularly one built around a cat-and-mouse chase, can make even the most improbable turn feel plausible because the characters, the atmosphere, and the suspense are persuasive enough to keep disbelief suspended. Haiwaan begins with precisely that promise — a potentially engrossing tale of guilt, vengeance, betrayal, and retribution, populated by characters whose secrets could have sustained a gripping psychological thriller. Instead, Priyadarshan’s remake of his own 2016 Malayalam film Oppam gradually loses sight of the thriller it could have been, drowning a promising premise in star power, implausible action, and a screenplay that repeatedly mistakes excess for excitement.
Sat, September 12 2026
Priyadarshan’s Haiwaan is a remake of his own Malayalam film Oppam (2016), which was a big hit a decade ago. After watching Haiwaan, I spent some time wondering why Priyadarshan chose to remake a successful film of his own. What value addition could he possibly bring to it? Alas, I couldn’t think of a satisfactory answer - except that commercial considerations must have warranted it.
Sat, September 12 2026
श्रीराम राघवन की फिल्म ‘अंधाधुन’ में एक अंधा पियानो प्लेयर एक खून होते हुए ‘देख’ लेता है। अब अंधा आदमी ‘देख’ कैसे सकता है? और यहीं से शुरू होती है छल, कपट और धोखे की एक अंधी दौड़ जिसमें कोई भी पाक-साफ नहीं है। प्रियदर्शन की इस फिल्म ‘हैवान’ में एक बिल्डिंग के अंधे मैंटेनेंस मैनेजर की जज साहब को मारने वाले एक खूनी से हाथापाई हुई है। वह उसे सूंघ कर पहचान लेता है लेकिन पुलिस उस अंधे को ही खूनी माने बैठी है। कैसे निकलेगा वह इस आरोप से? कैसे पकड़ा जाएगा वह खूनी? वह खून कर ही क्यों रहा है? क्यों वह ऐसा हैवान बना हुआ है जो अपने बदले की आग में मासूमों की जान लिए जा रहा है? सवाल कई हैं, जवाब यह फिल्म देती है। मगर क्या ये जवाब हज़म होने लायक हैं? आइए देखते हैं।
Slow Horses S06
Crime, Drama, Mystery (English)
Follow a dysfunctional team of MI5 agents—and their obnoxious boss, the notorious Jackson Lamb—as they navigate the espionage world's smoke and mirrors to defend England from sinister forces.
Cast:
Gary Oldman, Jack Lowden, Kristin Scott Thomas, Hugo Weaving, Saskia Reeves, Christopher Chung, Rosalind Eleazar, Aimee-Ffion Edwards
Wed, September 16 2026
The Emmy-nominated British espionage drama is back with its sixth season in six years, and the tension remains at an all-time high
Apple TV’s Slow Horses has never shied away from death. In the past five seasons, Slough House has lost several agents, and this season, the count is about to get higher. Gary Oldman’s Jackson Lamb must figure out who is targeting his agents and why. Based on the books of Mick Herron, the MI5 agents of Slough House have endured a lot, but this season, they’re truly on the run as sitting targets in a mission that’s out to get them. Led by Oldman and Jack Lowden, the darkly humorous spy thriller just improves with every season, as the writing, characterisation and direction just get sharper and hit that much harder.
Neagley
Drama, Mystery, Crime (English)
Frances Neagley is a private investigator in Chicago and former military colleague of Jack Reacher in the Army's 110th Special Investigations Unit. When she learns that a beloved friend from her past has been killed in a suspicious accident, she becomes hell-bent on justice.
Cast:
Maria Sten, Greyston Holt, Adeline Rudolph, Matthew Del Negro, Damon Herriman, Jasper Jones
Wed, September 16 2026
My loudly-declared soft spot for Reacher has always had room for Neagley, and when they are together, they rekindle old magic: maybe in the next Neagley outing, have more of Reacher? And maybe more Neagley, in the next Reacher?
At the outset, let me confess how keenly I was waiting for this Reacher spin-off, with his favourite team-mate Neagley at its centre: the fierce ex-Armywoman who went on to become a PI in Chicago, has been a staple in the best Reacher adventurers, and has livened up things everytime she shows up in the show. In her first solo outing, Maria Sten’s Neagley fills the screen with her presence, the creators Nick Santora and Nicholas Wootton wisely surrounding her with an interesting ensemble from the get-go: smart cop Hudson Riley (Greyston Hold), an equally smart secretary Renee Birdwhistle (Adeline Rudolph) and homeless orphan Keeno (Jasper Jones), who get enough to do together and on their own.