Filmmaker Geetu Mohandas shared a cryptic note on ‘women’s pleasure’ days after backlash over an intimate scene from the teaser of her upcoming film Toxic: A Fairytale for Grownups.

The internet can not stop talking about a particular car scene where Yash’s character is shown intimately close to a woman next to a cemetery. Social media users have been slamming Mohandas for ‘objectifying women’.

Others argued that the debate isn’t about ‘female pleasure’ or ‘objectification’ but about the scene’s importance in the teaser.

In response to the trolls, the filmmaker penned a cryptic note on Instagram: “Chilling while people figure out female pleasure, consent, women playing systems, etc., etc.”

However, the post immediately stirred a hornet’s nest with many users calling out the director, questioning her methods of portraying women’s consent and vulnerability in the film.

“Throughout the scene, the woman’s body, expressions, and reactions are fully shown, while the man remains hidden, no face, no body, not even a single expression, not showing his vulnerability. A more honest portrayal would involve showing both partners, or protecting both, rather than exposing one to the camera while keeping the other hidden,” a social media user commented under the post.

Another comment reads, “Calling it ‘consensual’ is a reach. The scene is clearly meant to establish the character. She’s merely used as a weapon! It’s not even just objectifying! It’s something more disgusting & sick.”

“It is not enough to depict consent; the cinematic language itself must be transformed. Only when women are shown as narrative agents—making meaning rather than bearing it—can cinema move beyond the structures of the male gaze,” another Instagram user wrote under the post.

The makers of Toxic unveiled the teaser on December 8 to mark Yash’s birthday. Previously, the makers released first-look posters of Kiara Advani as Nadia and Huma Qureshi as Elizabeth. Nayanthara will be seen as Ganga, while Rukmini Vasanth essays the role of Melissa.

Produced by Venkat K. Narayana and Yash under the banners of KVN Productions and Monster Mind Creations, Toxic also stars Akshay Oberoi in a key role. The film is slated to release in theatres on 19 March 2026. It will clash with Aditya Dhar’s Dhurandhar 2 at the box office.