Dibakar Banerjee

Complexities of modern relationships and self-discovery in the high-tech age are explored through interconnected stories of love, friendship, and identity.

The directors of Emmy-nominated "Lust Stories" (Zoya Akhtar, Anurag Kashyap, Dibakar Banerjee and Karan Johar) reunite for this quartet of spine-chilling thrillers that will haunt you in your dreams.

Anurag Kashyap Kalindi (Radhika Apte), a college professor, engages in sexual intercourse with a student of hers named Tejas (Akash Thosar). Tejas brings Kalindi to his home, where he lives with his grandmother. Tejas acts all vulnerable that this is his first time having sex. The morning after, she reassures herself that it was only a one-time occurrence but later stresses over the power dynamic of a student-teacher relationship. Kalindi worries that Tejas will fall in love with her and then would get all emotional and start stalking her. At college, listening to her colleagues, Kalindi worries that sex with Tejas might have been non-consensual or Tejas might have been a minor. Kalindi makes Tejas record a statement on her phone stating that the sex between them was consensual. Kalindi tells Tejas that they will only be friends henceforth. Multiple scenes are woven throughout the segment which depict Kalindi speaking to someone off-screen, in the fashion of an interview. During these cuts, she reveals that she is married to a man named Mihir, who is 12 years older than her and remains a close confidante. Kalindi got married when she was 26. Inspired by adventurous stories of love and numerous short-term relationships, Kalindi is also on a mission to explore her own sexuality. She begins dating her colleague Neeraj (Randeep Jha) but breaks up with him due to his firm belief in monogamy and his sexual awkwardness. Kalindi was frustrated that it took Neeraj 17 days to make a move on her. Kalindi calls Tejas over to her place and confides in him. She realizes that Tejas is beginning a relationship with his classmate Natasha (Ridhi Khakhar), which Tejas vehemently denies. Kalindi notices Tejas and Natasha texting each other during her class. To get him to confess, Kalindi obsessively stalks the couple, behaves rudely towards Natasha, and even breaks into Tejas's room to search for evidence (where she finds Natasha's underwear). Tejas gets annoyed at Kalindi's behavior and starts screening her calls. Kalindi had the expectation that people who have been in a relationship should share everything with each other. Kalindi tells Tejas that Natasha is only using him and tells him to breakup with her. Finally, in her exasperation, Kalindi relays to Tejas that she was interested in him and that she wishes him luck with Natasha. Tejas says that he did not know that his relationship would hurt Kalindi so much. Tejas tells her that he was unaware of her feelings and is willing to leave Natasha for her, to which Kalindi replies that she is already married, leaving Tejas overwhelmed. Zoya Akhtar Sudhaa (Bhumi Pednekar) and Ajit (Neil Bhoopalam) are secretly in a passionate sexual relationship. It is revealed that Sudha is his maid, who arrives daily to clean his bachelor apartment. Ajit's parents arrive to stay for some time, during which Sudha is shown to diligently work for the family, despite earning only ignorance from Ajit. The family is from Meerut and Ajit lives in Mumbai and works as a software engineer in an MNC. One day, a family arrives with their daughter for a marriage proposal and Sudha is silently heartbroken. As she prepares food (tea and snacks), she watches the two families finalize the marriage and discuss the futures of their children. Sudha serves them tea and finds Ajit romancing his bride-to-be in his room. Ajit is already touching her hair in a sensual way. Sudha appears to be desolate as Ajit's mother distributes sweets and congratulates her. Sudha slowly eats a piece of the sweets and resuming her normal routine, is shown to leave the apartment after yet another day of work. Dibakar Banerjee Reena (Manisha Koirala), a housewife, is in an extra-marital affair with her husband Salman's close friend Sudhir (Jaideep Ahlawat). The two are in love and have maintained their secret relationship for 3 years. During one of Reena's visits to Sudhir's home, Salman (Sanjay Kapoor) relays to Sudhir that he suspects Reena is cheating on him. This causes Sudhir and Reena to panic. Reena voices they should tell Salman about the affair so they can openly be together and is disheartened at Sudhir's reaction as he does not seem to think it a possibility. Reena ends up calling Salman to Sudhir's home. Reena reveals to Salman that she is unhappy in their marriage and feels that Salman only needs a mother for his children, not a wife. After she reveals her 3-year affair with Sudhir, Salman breaks down and asks her to stay for the sake of their children. Later that night, the couple bond and make love whilst Reena is grief-stricken. The next morning, she tells Sudhir that Salman knows about the affair, wants her to end it and that Sudhir can never "know" that Salman was aware of the affair at all. Reena tells Sudhir that she cannot meet him again and leaves with her husband. Karan Johar Megha (Kiara Advani) is a young schoolteacher who is engaged to be married to Paras (Vicky Kaushal), an office worker. After their marriage, Megha discovers that while Paras is continuously pleasured during sex, he is not aware of her dissatisfaction. His family pushes her to bear children, as they believe this is the only pleasure that a woman desires. One day, Megha witnesses her colleague Rekha (Neha Dhupia) masturbating in the school library. This motivates Megha to use a vibrator; however, when she attempts to try it out, Paras arrives home in a disheveled state from an accident, and she rushes out to the living room with her vibrator still tucked beneath her sari. Paras's grandmother mistakes the vibrator's remote for a TV remote and unknowingly begins to increase the intensity. Megha eventually climaxes into an orgasm as her mother-in-law, sister-in-law, and Paras watch in shock. In retaliation, Paras's mother demands a divorce and announces that Megha's womb is not suitable to bear her son's children. One month later, Paras meets Megha and tells her that he does not wish to divorce her just because she made a mistake. After she firmly says that she made no mistake and that a woman has more desires than just children, Paras romantically feeds her ice cream, indicating that he is interested in pleasing her.

In a contemporary interpretation of war-torn Calcutta during the 1940s, the film follows the first adventure of Byomkesh, fresh out of college, as he pits himself against an evil genius who is out to destroy the world. It is his wits against the most villainous arch criminal the world has seen, in a world of murder, international political intrigue and seduction.