Toaster review: Sparks fly, but the heat doesn't last in this madcap Rajkummar Rao-Sanya Malhotra comedy

TOasterDirector: Vivek DaschaudaryCast: Rajkummar Rao, Sanya MalhotraRating: ★★.5At unity repoint in wassailer, Ramakant (Rajkummar Rao) goads Inspector Balagode (Upendra Limaye) to “ waken the beast inside you” and that, for me, is the film’s smartest, most tongue-in-cheek moment. It cheekily nods to Limaye’s presence in the hit Animal (2023), but also makes you wonder if there’s enough of that crackling energy here to truly power Toaster. Let’s find out.Directed by Vivek Daschaudary, Toaster brings to mind films like Lootcase and Madgaon Express, which steered clear of cheap humour and double entendre, relying instead on situational comedy and sharp writing. The story follows Ramakant, a miser to the core, who would rather gift a perfume tester from his own shop at a wedding than loosen his purse strings. He’s married to Shilpa (Sanya Malhotra), who loves him despite his many quirks. At a wedding, she convinces him to gift the couple an expensive toaster. When the wedding is abruptly called off, Ramakant wants his toaster back. What follows is a spiral of confusion -- and murder. The film opens on a breezy note, with Rajkummar and Sanya in sync with the screenplay by Parveez Shaikh, Akshat Ghildial and Anagh Mukherjee. Up until the halfway mark, there’s enough momentum to keep you hooked. The chaos in Ramakant’s life escalates steadily, giving the writers room to explore his character. And yet, a familiar itch sets in. You begin to feel like you’ve met Ramakant before, in Rao’s gallery of eccentric men. Beyond a point, he starts to feel like just another addition to that universe.As the film progresses, it begins to lose steam. The humour still lands in parts, but increasingly, it feels like it’s fighting its way through a growing monotony. The second half, in particular, struggles to sustain the sharpness of the setup, gags stretching a beat too long. What initially feels like controlled chaos slowly turns into narrative fatigue. The stakes don’t quite escalate as effectively as they should. Even the quirkiness, which works so well in the beginning, starts to feel indulgent rather than inventive. By the time the film inches towards its finale, you’re left wishing the writing had found fresher ways to keep that early spark alive.Performance-wise, Rajkummar is the heart of the film, which also marks his debut as a producer. There’s an inherent watchability to him that keeps you invested even when the film wavers. That said, his character arc doesn’t land in the sweet spot. Sanya Malhotra is effective as his wife. Archana Puran Singh gets a meaty part, but the big reveal tied to her character doesn’t land with the impact it aims for. Abhishek Banerjee is dependable as ever, slipping into his role with ease, while Seema Pahwa fits into this eccentric world, adding her own flavour to the madness.Overall, at two hours, Toaster has some spark to keep you mildly entertained, even if it doesn’t quite sustain the heat it promises early on. It thrives on some clever writing and a committed cast, but loses grip as the narrative begins to stretch itself thin. There are moments of wit and absurdity that remind you of what the film could have been, but they arrive a little too sporadically. In the end, it’s a one-time watch that works in bursts, without fully coming together as a sharply toasted whole.