Best of the Best, Vibe & Lust Stories 3 | Khandaan Podcast

Support Khandaan and watch our full video episodes at Patreon.com/KhandaanPodcast. Three films arrived in the same week, so Asim, Amrita and Sujoy have plenty to discuss. Sujoy thinks Kunal Khemu’s Vibe is one of Bollywood’s best films of the year. Amrita appreciates Khemu’s distinct comic voice but wonders whether the movie occasionally feels like a showcase for its writer, director, producer and star. Asim reviews Netflix’s Lust Stories 3 and asks why four acclaimed filmmakers have delivered an anthology that feels so strangely uniform. The main review is Best of the Best, a South Asian college dance comedy starring Maitreyi Ramakrishnan. The hosts discuss girlhood, female friendship, colourism, diaspora identity, cultural gatekeeping and the importance of joyful South Asian stories. Sujoy, meanwhile, remains unconvinced by the film’s dancing, college rivalries and Hasan Minhaj. Also: Preity Zinta, Bollywood music rights, Kunal Khemu versus the YRF Spy Universe and Asim inventing yet another Indian celebrity. Follow Khandaan on YouTube and Patreon for video episodes, bonus conversations and more. Chapters: 00:00 Welcome and too many new releases 00:26 Four films arrived in one week 03:21 Vibe review 06:04 Is Vibe a “boys’ movie”? 07:02 Kunal Khemu’s directorial voice 09:34 Preity Zinta returns 12:08 AI terrorists and competent comedy 14:03 Vibe versus the YRF Spy Universe 15:02 Should Kunal Khemu direct other actors? 16:24 Asim invents another Indian celebrity 18:01 Lust Stories 3 review 20:21 Four acclaimed directors, one uniform style 22:32 The relationship problems of Lust Stories 24:16 Kiran Rao’s contribution 25:38 Vikramaditya Motwane’s contribution 26:56 Shakun Batra’s contribution 28:02 Vishal Bhardwaj’s contribution 30:00 The strangely sanitised intimacy 31:32 Why Lust Stories is not for Asim 32:59 A growing cultural disconnect 33:32 Best of the Best review 36:04 Girlhood and complicated friendships 39:32 Why Sujoy could not connect with it 42:07 Can Maitreyi Ramakrishnan dance? 43:23 A joyful South Asian movie 44:11 Diaspora culture versus Indian culture 45:28 Why all group activities are dorky 45:57 The outsider experience 46:55 South Asian identity beyond India 47:22 Sisterhood and brown male characters 50:33 Maitreyi versus Hasan Minhaj 52:23 Identity, history and speaking honestly 54:39 Popularity, aggression and female friendship 56:15 Watching the movie with Sofia 57:09 The cost of licensing Bollywood music 59:28 The film’s best dance joke 01:00:18 Choreography and campus culture 01:03:55 Why Asian stories struggle to survive 01:07:19 The Best of the Best soundtrack 01:08:45 Game the Netflix algorithm 01:09:05 Where to find Khandaan