‘Lust Stories 3’ to Premiere on Netflix September 18 With Four Directors and Star-Studded Cast
Introduction
Netflix is bringing Lust Stories back for a third instalment, with the streaming platform confirming that Lust Stories 3 will premiere on September 18, 2026.
The new anthology once again uses four separate stories to examine intimacy and relationships, this time through the filmmaking perspectives of Vikramaditya Motwane, Kiran Rao, Shakun Batra and Vishal Bhardwaj.
The project also assembles a wide-ranging cast led by Radhika Apte, Konkona Sen Sharma, Aditi Rao Hydari, Radhika Madan, Sana Thampi, Vijay Varma, Abhishek Banerjee, Siddharth, Ali Fazal and Gurfateh Pirzada.
Produced by RSVP and Flying Unicorn Entertainment, the film continues a franchise that began in 2018 and subsequently earned international recognition, including an International Emmy nomination.
Four Filmmakers, Four Different Perspectives
Rather than extending a single storyline, Lust Stories 3 retains the anthology structure at the heart of the franchise.
Motwane, Rao, Batra and Bhardwaj will each direct an individual story. Netflix says the four films approach love, lust, relationships and repressed desire through contemporary and deeply personal perspectives.
That structure gives the third instalment room to shift in tone and storytelling style while maintaining intimacy and human relationships as its connecting thread.
Ruchikaa Kapoor Sheikh, Director of Original Films at Netflix India, said the franchise's ability to continually reinterpret its central themes has contributed to its longevity.
“What gives Lust Stories its enduring appeal is its ability to reinvent itself,” she said.
She added that desire in the latest anthology becomes a way of examining themes including power, vulnerability, agency and compromise.
Radhika Apte, Konkona Sen Sharma and Vijay Varma Lead Ensemble Cast
The third edition has assembled actors from across contemporary Hindi and Indian cinema.
The confirmed cast includes:
Radhika Apte
Konkona Sen Sharma
Aditi Rao Hydari
Radhika Madan
Sana Thampi
Vijay Varma
Abhishek Banerjee
Siddharth
Ali Fazal
Gurfateh Pirzada
The lineup also creates links with earlier chapters of the franchise. Radhika Apte appeared in the original Lust Stories, while Vijay Varma was part of Lust Stories 2.
Their return does not, however, mean the new anthology continues their earlier characters or storylines. Netflix has presented the third instalment as four new stories.
Aditi Rao Hydari and Siddharth Among New Additions
Aditi Rao Hydari and Siddharth are among the notable additions to the franchise's third edition.
They join an ensemble that mixes performers who have previously appeared in Lust Stories with actors entering the anthology for the first time.
Ali Fazal, Radhika Madan, Sana Thampi, Abhishek Banerjee and Gurfateh Pirzada are also part of the announced cast.
Netflix's official listing categorises Lust Stories 3 as a 2026 romance and describes it as a collection of short films exploring sex, relationships, desire and love.
An Extensive Writing Team Behind the Four Stories
The creative lineup extends beyond the four directors.
Writers credited across the anthology include Kiran Rao, Tanaji Dasgupta, Avinash Sampath, Sumukhi Suresh, Shakun Batra, Sameeha Sabnis, Ashwathi Namboodiri, Nitesh Bhatia, Utkarshini Vashishtha and Vishal Bhardwaj.
Bringing several writers and filmmakers into one project allows each segment to develop its own creative identity rather than forcing all four stories into the same narrative style.
Producers Say the Franchise Has Evolved With Modern Relationships
Ronnie Screwvala, producer at RSVP, said the anthology has evolved alongside changing ideas about relationships and intimacy.
“With every edition, Lust Stories has challenged conventions by bringing together exceptional filmmakers to tell deeply human stories,” Screwvala said.
He described Netflix as an important partner in giving the individual films a global platform and said the latest instalment continues that collaboration with four different filmmakers.
Flying Unicorn Entertainment producer Ashi Dua similarly emphasised the contrasts between the individual films, saying each story differs in tone and perspective while sharing an emphasis on honesty and vulnerability.
How ‘Lust Stories’ Became a Netflix Anthology Franchise
The original Lust Stories arrived in 2018, bringing together four filmmakers to tell separate stories about intimacy, sexuality and relationships.
The anthology format allowed the project to approach subjects that mainstream Hindi cinema had often treated cautiously, while letting each filmmaker work independently within a common thematic framework.
A second instalment followed in 2023 with another group of filmmakers and performers.
Rather than turning the concept into a conventional continuing series with recurring characters, the franchise has retained its defining structure: new stories, new creative combinations and different interpretations of relationships and desire.
The third instalment follows that model while introducing another high-profile group of directors.
When and Where to Watch ‘Lust Stories 3’
Lust Stories 3 will premiere exclusively on Netflix on September 18, 2026.
The confirmed details are:
Release date: September 18, 2026
Streaming platform: Netflix
Format: Four-film anthology
Directors: Vikramaditya Motwane, Kiran Rao, Shakun Batra and Vishal Bhardwaj
Producers: RSVP and Flying Unicorn Entertainment
With four established filmmakers interpreting the same broad territory from different angles, the third edition's central attraction lies less in a single overarching plot than in the contrasts between its four stories.
That creative variety has defined Lust Stories since its debut. The September 18 release will show how its newest filmmakers reinterpret intimacy and relationships for another chapter of the anthology.
