Who is Justice Chandru, the person Suriya plays in Jai Bhim?
THE MOVIE: Based on real events that took place in Tamil Nadu's Cuddalore in 1993, Jai Bhim is the story of justice by Advocate Chandru who fights for Rajakannu and Sengani (real-life Parvathi), a couple from a tribal community. A cruel turn of events turns their life upside down. The police arrest and torture Rajakannu along with a few others on false charges: they are ''suspects’’ in a robbery case. Rajakannu dies in police custody. Two others disappear from prison; and the police call the sudden disappearance of all three an 'escape'. Sengani seeks help from the righteous Advocate Chandru. Chandru fights a 13-year battle and finally wins the case.
WHO IS JUSTICE CHANDRU? Justice K Chandru is a former Madras High Court judge who is well-known for his impact in the lives of the tribal community of Tamil Nadu. He is an activist-turned-lawyer-turned-judge, and was appointed as the Madras High Court Judge by former President APJ Abdul Kalam.
Justice Chandru spent a lot of time as an activist and a functionary of the Leftist party which gave him an insight into how the society and law worked. He banked on dedication, planning, discipline and case categorisation to have one of the most prolific case disposal rates in the country. Known to have disposed of 96,000 cases as a judge, Jai Bhim represents one of the most landmark cases that Justice Chandru fought as a lawyer.
In an interview, the retired judge mentioned how he only heard lawyers during the admission process of a case if he wanted to dismiss one. This would reduce his case processing time from 3/4th of a day to just 15 minutes. He would work over the weekend to classify his cases, batch them together in order of the ‘type of case’, and allot all cases of the same type on a day.
As the youngest member of the Bar Council of Tamil Nadu, he is known to have taken anti-caste and pro-tribal justice stances in his career. He is one of the few judges who dismissed his personal security during his tenure. He always believed that the court belonged to the public and should work for the litigant.
LOVE FOR JAI BHIM: Jai Bhim has received immense praise on social media from critics, masses, and even IPS officers for its powerful storytelling and realistic depiction of the real-life events.
THE O: Police narratives like Dabangg have made us root for the Chulbul Pandeys over the Chheddi Singhs. Jai Bhim shows us the other side of the coin.