Nayanthara Reveals Why She Attended Toxic Trailer Launch: “Yash Just Made a Call and It Was Enough for Me”

Nayanthara may not be someone who enjoys promotional events, but when it came to the Toxic: A Fairy Tale for Grown-Ups trailer launch, she made an exception—and she had a very personal reason for it. Speaking at the Bengaluru event alongside the film's ensemble, Nayanthara candidly revealed, “It's not that I don't want to attend promotional events. It's just that I'm not very good at it, so I stay away from it. But this was special.” The actor then shared the simple reason behind her presence: “I think it's just Yash. He just made a call and it was enough for me to just attend the event.”

Nayanthara also said the event was special because of the scale of the vision behind Toxic and the people who came together to make it happen. She began by thanking producer Venkat K. Narayana for believing in Geetu Mohandas' vision and bringing the team together. “Thank you so much for bringing all of us together and for believing in a vision that Geetu had from a script, from a baseline. There's no way you could have thought that this is going to be what we have all seen and experienced,” she said, calling him one of the nicest producers she has worked with.

The actor then showered affection on her co-stars, turning her speech into a warm celebration of the entire ensemble. She congratulated Rukmini Vasanth on her journey, praised Kiara Advani and boldly predicted that Toxic could become one of the defining films of her career. “This is one of the best films that you have done in your entire career. And like you said, there's a Kiara before and there's going to be a Kiara after Toxic,” Nayanthara said, adding that Kiara looked “absolutely stunning” in the film. She also had a playful moment while praising Tara Sutaria, saying the actor genuinely looked like a Disney princess.

Nayanthara spoke fondly about Huma Qureshi, revealing that the two became friends while working together on the film. “On sets, I made a friend. I think me and Huma have spoken the most on sets because we had the most combinations,” she shared. She also acknowledged the film's technical team, including cinematographer Rajiv Sur and Sandy, while making sure to send love to the entire crew. Her speech had the warmth of someone looking back at a shared experience rather than simply promoting an upcoming release.

But the most emotional portion of Nayanthara's speech was reserved for Geetu Mohandas. The two had previously worked together as actors nearly 20 years ago, but Nayanthara said the Geetu who returned to her life as a director was a completely different person. “Me and Geetu have had a very, very long journey and a beautiful one. Me and Geetu have worked together in a film. We have acted together in a film. How many years back? I don't even remember, 20 years back maybe,” she recalled. After hearing Geetu narrate Toxic, however, Nayanthara knew she was witnessing something extraordinary. “Who is this woman? Who is this director that we have not seen?” she remembered thinking.

Nayanthara's praise for Geetu ultimately went beyond filmmaking. She described the director's emotional investment in every member of the cast and recalled how Geetu supported the actors through difficult moments. “The woman that you are, the way you took care of each and every actor, the way you gave love when everyone needed you,” she said. Recalling one particularly difficult day on set, Nayanthara described how Geetu went into someone's caravan before returning and simply explained, “No, I just gave love.” For Nayanthara, that one sentence revealed the depth of Geetu's sensitivity as a filmmaker and as a person.

The trailer launch therefore became much more than a promotional event for Nayanthara. It was a celebration of the people she shared the Toxic journey with, from Yash and Geetu to Kiara, Tara, Huma and Rukmini. And her opening confession made the moment even more special: she may normally stay away from promotional appearances, but “Yash just made a call and it was enough for me to just attend the event.” Toxic: A Fairy Tale for Grown-Ups, directed by Geetu Mohandas and produced by Venkat K. Narayana and Yash, stars Yash in a dual role alongside Nayanthara, Kiara Advani, Huma Qureshi, Tara Sutaria and Rukmini Vasanth. Shot simultaneously in Kannada and English, the gangster drama arrives worldwide on August 26, 2026.