Synopsis

Three desperate women turn Astey Ladies robbers to save their hairstyling parlour, Salon De Paris. Now, they’re in the middle of something big: a diamond heist! What’s next?

Anyone who has ever boarded a public bus in Kolkata must be familiar of the expression, “Astey Ladies.” It roughly translates to ‘Go slow, there’s a lady boarding/getting off’, and is used as a warning from the bus conductor to the driver, if the occasion demands it. Over the years, the expression has been debated in many ways – with arguments presented both for and against its use. Some say it is a mark of respect for women of various age who may need a little extra help from the bus staff while boarding or getting off the vehicle – especially when some passengers are expected to board or get off the bus when it is still moving. Others feel that the use of the expression Astey Ladies is outright sexist, and that it is an unfair and snide comment on the physical ability of women in general, something that ought not to be brought into question had the bus come to a total halt at its designated stop.Astey Ladies Season 1

I don’t know what director Abhijit Chowdhury feels about this age-old expression that is so familiar to the city, but one thing is for sure – his new web series Astey Ladies! is taking no prisoners, certainly not male ones.Three upwardly mobile middle class women run a hair styling parlour called Salon de Paris in the city of Kolkata. They come from various backgrounds and are of entirely different nature themselves, but love their salon to death. When their parlour comes under threat from a businessman of dubious reputation, the three women must do everything they can to save it. But in order to do that, they need a large sum of money, which they don’t possess. The three women then start doing petty robberies, until one day, their luck runs out and they are caught by a man who turns out to be sharper than them. But the man does not turn them over to the cops, nor does he bring any harm to them. Because he has a plan for them, one that involves a major diamond heist.