‘Lust Stories’ was one of the first Indian Original shows to release on Netflix India back in 2018. It was also one of the first legit hits for the then fledging Indian arm of the global streaming giant. Viewers loved the series’ unabashed, unfiltered take on lust, the much-maligned alter ego of the glorified emotion, love. More importantly, ‘Lust Stories’ was a series that placed female sexuality at the front and centre of the each narrative in the 4-part narrative. Putting female sexuality as the centrepiece of a series was an alien concept for the Indian content space – virgin and unexplored; except maybe for the looked-down-upon ALT Balaji show, ‘Gandii Baat’.
The unique thing about Netflix’s ‘Lust Stories‘ anthology was the exalted names associated with the series. The show starred actors of the calibre of Kiara Advani, Radhika Apte, Bhumi Pednekar, Vicky Kaushal, Manisha Koirala, Jaideep Ahlawat, Sanjay Kapoor, Neil Bhoopalam, among others. The four stories were helmed by top-notch directors, Karan Johar, Anurag Kashyap, Zoya Akhtar and Dibakar Banerjee. It was produced by Ronnie Screwvala and Ashi Dua.
Now we hear ‘Lust Stories 2’ is in the works at Netflix, and the names associated with the new season of Lust Stories are just as big. For starters, Kajol is slated to star in one of the short stories, filming for which has begun already. Lust Stories 2 will again consist of four short films, to be helmed by Konkona Sen Sharma, R Balki, and Amit Sharma and Sujoy Ghosh each.
But the foremost question that niggles in the mind is – will Lust Stories 2 pack as big a punch for Netflix as the original Lust Stories did? Coz let’s face it, Lust Stories released on Netflix even before Sacred Games did. And it established a certain quality and brand associated with Netflix in the minds of the general public. It is no exaggeration to say that Lust Stories proved to be a game-changer for Netflix back in 2018.
Cut to 2022. Much water has flown under the bridge of Indian streaming. Sex and sexuality, including female sexuality, have been done to death in numerous shows. There’s only so much that lustful romps in bed can do to hook now-mature OTT audiences. Another concept that has run its course is that of anthologies. Anthology shows are a dime a dozen on streaming platforms, and they’ve simply lost their charm among digital viewers. It would be safe to say that anthology shows are the least-performing OTT content at present.
Netflix’s Lust Stories 2 will come at a time in the Indian streaming space when the digital viewer has evolved beyond the rudimentary. Sex, sexuality and ‘lust’ no longer hold as much allure for Indian viewers as they did back in 2018. They’ve been exposed to more, much more – remember 365 Days and the Fifty Shades Of Grey trilogy, both on Netflix itself? Add to it shows such as ‘Dark Desire and Sex/Life. With so much tastefully-shot sex and nudity on display, do Indian viewers really care about the cringey sex of Indian Original shows?
Naah!
Netflix, and the stakeholders of ‘Lust Stories 2’ will have to try harder and stronger to win over the evolved Indian OTT viewer.
It’s time for them to wake up from their la la land, and smell the coffee. A lustful punch will do no longer. A lust-laden wallop is what will shake the living daylights out of the average Indian OTT viewer.
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