There was a lot riding on Yash and Geetu Mohandas’ Toxic. The film marked Yash’s comeback to the big screen four years after the audacious success of KGF: Chapter 2 in 2022.
But the anticipation wasn’t just about seeing their star back on screen. For the industry, too, Toxic carried the hope of reviving Kannada cinema. The industry, which had two breakout hits last year — Rishab Shetty’s Kantara: Chapter 1 and Raj B Shetty’s Su From So — had yet to replicate the reapings this year.
But the impact of Toxic hasn’t quite matched the expectations around it.
The Weight Of Expectations
The film, which opened to an incredible ₹150 crore on August 26, eventually saw its box-office run peter out, following mixed to largely disappointed reviews. In its first five days, the film has grossed close to ₹300 crore worldwide, with the India net standing at around ₹220 crore, according to Karnataka Box Office, a popular box-office tracking platform.
“Every filmmaker and person in the industry wanted Toxic to win,” says Kannada film producer Ravichandra AJ in an interview with THR India. Ravichandra has produced Dheekshith Shetty’s Blink (2024) and Diganth Manchale’s Edagaiye Apaghatakke Karana (2025).
“Most producers aren’t able to recover their money in today’s times. We spoke about the state of distributors and producers just a year back for Edagaiye Apaghatakke Karana and even now, the situation remains the same.”
A Risk That Hasn't Quite Paid Off
For the film’s budget — speculated to be around ₹500 crore — it wasn’t able to transform its ambitious ideas into the screenplay, adds Ravichandra. Some of it might also have to do with its promotions, jump cuts and its adult rating, he argues, “As a viewer, I enjoyed Toxic for its attempt. But from a business perspective, I felt they could have told audiences what the film was from the beginning. They should have marketed it as an experimental film, rather than the kind of action fare we assumed it would be. The climax would’ve worked among all audiences but the ‘A’ rating filtered people out.”
The producer also points to what he believes were deliberate negative reviews that appeared to push the film down even before its first show on Day 1. “I saw so many reviews for the film even before the first show was completed. How is that possible? Maybe a lot of them watched these shows in the US, but how did Indian accounts start reviewing before time then? People are entitled to their opinions on films but this sort of deliberate and targeted bringing down of a film must not be entertained.”
Does Yash's Choice to Experiment Deserve Appreciation?
The film, co-starring Kiara Advani, Rukmini Vasanth, Tara Sutaria and Huma Qureshi, explores the tumultuous romance between a gangster (Yash) and a trapeze artist (Advani), and the strain of their relationship and his own vices on his psyche. The founder of Karnataka Box Office, who has chosen to keep their identity private, feels Toxic was an attempt to bridge mainstream cinema with unconventional storytelling.
“When Yash decided to make a film that could appeal to audiences across India and potentially have a global reach, he could have easily chosen another conventional commercial entertainer. Instead, he chose to do something different,” says the box-office tracker.
“That intent deserves appreciation. However, the experiment has clearly connected with only a relatively small section of the audience. The attempt to combine Yash’s mass appeal with a more psychological and unconventional narrative has not worked universally."
The film’s reception also leaves room for some food for thought. “It raises questions about how much audiences are willing to embrace experimentation when it comes to films featuring major stars," they add.
Can One Film Carry An Industry?
Toxic was expected to be an energy booster for the Kannada film industry, which has otherwise had a relatively dry year at the box-office, the tracker adds, “Apart from Love Mocktail, we haven’t seen many films making a significant impact commercially.”
This film’s response has further led to concerns about the health of the industry, which has struggled to remain consistent. Sunayana Suresh, a filmmaker and a senior critic in the Kannada film industry, feels it's unfair to make one film the barometer for an entire industry.
“Toxic is an unusual case because Yash and Geetu Mohandas have chosen to attempt something quite divisive rather than simply recreate KGF. It may not have worked for everyone, but I think there is value in a star of this scale taking that risk,” she says, adding that the doomsday narrative is exaggerated.
“Most of these critics are those that have very little knowledge of the history and the nature of the Kannada film industry in particular and do not observe it all fully.” Kannada cinema might be going through a challenging phase, but the industry isn’t collapsing, she argues.
This leaves way for the industry to actually address structural and consistency issues, including with films like Toxic. “As a critic, I have issues with Toxic too. I think at certain points the film's celebration of toxicity and misogyny perhaps goes too far and actually undermines the critique it seems to be making. But that doesn't mean the attempt itself should be dismissed. We need films that take risks, even when those risks don't entirely land. We also need to stop expecting every big star film to carry the entire industry on its shoulders.”
Rallying Behind Yash
Toxic might not have moved the needle as much as the audiences had hoped, but the industry still rallied behind Yash to laud his effort. Stars including Rishab Shetty and Kichcha Sudeep, registered support and validation for their fellow actor on X.
“I think there is a genuine sense of fraternity in Kannada cinema. These are people who have grown within the same industry and have seen its highs and lows. There is also an understanding that when one of your biggest stars takes a creative risk, it ultimately reflects on Kannada cinema as a whole. Yash could have played it safe after KGF, and he chose not to. I think that is what Rishab and Sudeep are respecting,” says Suresh.
While Ravichandra, too, is appreciative of this support, he hopes this can be practiced for films of all scales. “This was an ambitious project where every filmmaker wanted Toxic to win. Blink too was an experimental film, but we didn’t get a lot of support back then. The industry should maintain this practice even for small films.”