Bollywood is going through a bad phase today. After Badrinath Ki Dulhaniya , we haven’t got any clean hit. Where Big Superstars Salman Khan and Shah Rukh Khan failed with their Tubelight and Jab Harry Met Sejal respectively , now all eyes are set on Akshay Kumar’s Toilet Ek Prem Katha. Trade has great expectations from Akshay Kumar starer.
This is Akshay’s second film this year after Jolly LLB 2 which was a Commercial Success.
Same is being expected from TEPK ( Toilet Ek Prem Katha).

But like 90% Bollywood Films, TEPK too has fallen a prey to an irritating context – “First half is very good. Second half is average / bad.” Lets see the detailed review of Toilet Ek Prem Katha. But fortunately this one is saved by stellar performances and apt dialogues for this kind of genre.

Story / Screenplay :
Toilet Ek Prem Katha is a love story and a satirical comedy in support of our Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s ‘Swaccha Bharat Abhiyan’, a governmental campaign to improve the sanitation conditions, with an emphasis on the eradication of open defecation especially in rural areas. Keshav ( Akshay) falls in love with Jaya ( Bhumi Pednekar) ,College Topper. Few reels are utilized for their love to bloom. Akshay follows her , first she ignores and then gradually falls for him. Though this is cliched spot , but you don’t get bore. You enjoy it.
Keshav’s life seems to be on the right path as he gets married to his love Jaya but her life turns upside down when she discovers that Keshav’s house has no toilet. And he can’t build one because of the prevalent religious beliefs. And she is not ready to go for in open. Keshav agrees with Jaya and tries to convince his father for this. But his father ( Sudhir Pandey ) refuses his demand which prompts Akshay to rebel against the society and he has an uphill task on his hand. He, however, is willing to go all the way for his love for Jaya. So will he be successful ? Will Jaya come back to his life ? All questions will be answered in theaters near you.
Screenplay is written by Sidharth Singh and Garima Wahal. And I must add that first half is thoroughly entertaining and that’s the success of screenplay writers. But Unfortunately this success is limited to first half only. Second half is a bit stretched and filled with unnecessary elements like reference to Demonetization. Some scenes in pre-climax are repetitive. I don’t understand why writers can’t keep second half as engaging ans smooth as first. Don’t they understand that audiences leave theaters with second half ?
Neverthless, lets move ahead.
Performances :
The biggest plus point of TEPK is – Performances. Yes. Akshay Kumar as Keshav has nailed it here. He knows what audience love about him. He portrays that with full dedication and enthusiasm. Director has used his acting skills quintessentially. From facial expressions to dialogue deliveries to romance , Akshay excels everywhere except for a few reels post interval. Bhumi , as Jaya too has lived her character. She looks simple and that adds feather to her act. Divyendu in a supporting role is Amazing. His scenes with Akshay are hilarious. Sudhir Pandey and Anupam Kher too have done great jobs. Overall , this film is rich by Performances.

Music :
I am a tad disappointed with music. Has Mat Pagli is the only song that you remember after living theater. Bakheda is okay and feels good while watching on big screens. Other songs feels like speed breaker and seems unnecessary.

Direction :
Toilet Ek Prem Katha has been Directed by Shree Narayan Singh. And he has done a decent job. He knows how to use his actors and make them deliver praiseworthy performance. But his grip on film looses post interval. Another let down is Editing. I think film could have been 15 minutes shorter. Director has put some unnecessary scenes post interval. He should have had editor cut some of them. Neverthless, he retain his grip on movie in some scenes in climax and give us a good enterainer.
Lets have a look on some Positive and Negative aspects of TEPK.
Positives : Story , Performances , Dialogues , Direction , and screenplay of first half.
Negatives : Editing, Music , Screenplay of Second half.

On the whole , Toilet Ek Prem Katha is a good entertainer. First half is very good and entertaining but second half is average entertainer. Watch this film if you want some good dose of laughter this weekend. Director has tried to give some ‘gyan’ in second half but that may go good with some and also irritating for some. But you will be satisfied to have seen though not very good but a good film. I am going with 3 out of 5 for Akshay Kumar’s Toilet Ek Prem Katha.

Ratings 7/10