Jai Bhim (film)

Jai Bhim ( transl. Victory to Bhim) is a 2021 Indian Tamil-language legal drama film directed by T. J. Gnanavel. It was produced by Jyothika and Suriya under the banner of 2D Entertainment. The film stars Suriya, Lijomol Jose and Manikandan with Rajisha Vijayan, Prakash Raj, Guru Somasundaram, and Rao Ramesh in supporting roles. The film is about police bias and state violence against a marginalised community. Jai Bhim is based on a 1993 Cuddalore incident that involves a legal case fought by K. Chandru, who later became a judge; it revolves around Sengeni and Rajakannu, a couple from the Irular tribe. Police arrested Rajakannu and he later went missing from the police station. Sengeni seeks the help of lawyer Chandru to seek justice for her husband.

The film was announced in April 2021, and principal photography began that month with the filming of sequences in Chennai and Kodaikanal. Production was halted due to the COVID-19 pandemic; filming resumed in July 2021 and was completed that September. S. R. Kathir handled the cinematography and Philomin Raj was the editor. Sean Roldan composed the film's music and score. The film's title is a reference to a slogan used by followers of B. R. Ambedkar.

Jai Bhim was released on Amazon Prime Video, prior to Diwali, on 2 November 2021 as part of a multi-film deal signed by 2D Entertainment. The film received nationwide acclaim from critics, who praised the story, performances of Suriya, Lijomol Jose and Manikandan, direction and social message. Several publications have listed Jai Bhim as one of the best Tamil and Indian films of 2021.

Plot

In 1993, Rajakannu and Sengeni, a couple from the Irula tribe, work in the fields of upper-caste men to control the numbers of rats and venomous snakes. Rajakannu is called to capture a snake at a rich man's dwelling. The next day, a burglary at the house is reported when the man's wife reports jewellery missing from her closet and suspicion falls upon Rajakannu. The police invade Rajakannu's home, wallop and unlawfully detain Sengeni, who is pregnant. The police also arrest and torture Rajakannu's brother Iruttappan, his sister Pachaiammal and his brother-in-law Mosakutty to extract information about Rajakannu's whereabouts. The police release Sengeni but imprison Rajakannu and torture him to make him confess to the crime. Later, Sengeni is informed about the abscondment of all three detained men, and the police further threaten her to divulge their whereabouts.

Mythra, who teaches adults from the Irula tribe, learns about Chandru, a lawyer who fights cases for tribal communities, and persuades him to seek justice for Sengeni. After listening to Sengeni's story, Chandru files a habeas corpus case in court, which advises them to file in a lower court. Chandru asks for a witness examination, which is not the procedure in a habeas corpus case. Chandru cites the Rajan case and the court yields. The Solicitor General appears for the police and argues, based on the police officers' evidence, Rajakannu and the other two men absconded from police custody the night they were arrested. Chandru discovers that the police were committing perjury and asks the court to investigate Sub-Inspector Gurumurthy, head constable Veerasamy and constable Kirubakaran.

Advocate General Ram Mohan takes over the legal case and says the three accused men have fled to Kerala. Varadarajulu, Iruttapan's employer, acknowledges Iruttapan informed him he had fled after committing a robbery. Chandru discovers the three policemen went to Kerala to make a telephone call to Varadarajulu and that Guru mimicked Iruttapan's voice. Upon Chandru's request, the court appoints Inspector General Perumalsamy as the lead officer in the case. After searching for weeks, Chandru, Perumalsamy gets an idea to search in the districts around Cuddalore, and goes to the border station in Pondicherry. While searching the files of unidentified corpses found in the prior 6 months, the duo find out that the Police had recovered Rajakannu's corpse on a road close to the border of Pondicherry the day after he supposedly fled, and they had cremated his body in accordance with the law. Both believe Rajakannu did not die due to a car accident but due to his murder in custody.

Chandru talks to the pathologist who conducted Rajakannu's postmortem in JIPMER; he believes Rajakannu's death was due to a broken rib cage that could have been caused by a car running over him. Veerasamy admits to Ram Mohan that Rajakannu died in custody due to torture. Veerasamy called Guru after Rajakannu's death. Guru tells Veerasamy to say both had escaped and left Rajakannu on the road, framing his death as a car accident. Mosakutty and Iruttapan were sent to another jail in Kerala. After hearing this, Ram Mohan advises them to maintain their narrative in court. Chandru checks the police station's call history and tells the court that a call to Guru's residence was made at 9:10 p.m., which does not corroborate Veerasamy's evidence. Chandru asks for more time to investigate.

Chandru, Mythra, Sengeni and the Irular tribe campaign against the injustice that happened. Chandru finds the police coerced Irutappan to call Varadarajulu. Chandru looks into the jails near the stations where Guru had worked earlier and finds some cases odd. Mythra locates Iruttapan and Mosakutty in a jail near Dharapuram, and they testify in court about the torture all three of them underwent and how the police officers killed Rajakannu. Perumalsamy says the police officers took bribes from the actual thief to cover the matter up. Chandru also says they found tyre marks on the road near Rajakannu's corpse, which exactly match the ones in the police truck of Guru's station. The footprints have also matched Guru's and Kiruba's footprints. After hearing this evidence and final representations from both sides, the court announces the verdict to conduct an expedited murder-trial against the three cops and orders their immediate arrests. The court praises Perumalsamy and Chandru for their hardwork. Sengeni is awarded ₹3 lakhs (equivalent to ₹18 lakh or US$23,000 in 2020) and half a ground land in her village as compensation, and Iruttappan, Mosakutty and Pachaiamma are awarded ₹2 lakhs (equivalent to ₹12 lakh or US$15,000 in 2020) each. Sengeni thanks Chandru for his help, and Chandru attends the inauguration of Sengeni's new house, fulfilling Rajakannu's dream to buy Sengeni a new home.

Cast

Production

Development

In March 2020, media reported Suriya would be collaborating with T. J. Gnanavel, director of Kootathil Oruthan (2017), for a legal drama film based on tribal people. It was further stated that the film would be based on a true incident in 1993, and Suriya plays the role of a lawyer. His role is based on retired Madras High Court justice and former senior advocate K. Chandru, who campaigned for justice for a woman of the Irular tribe. The tribeswoman's husband Rajakannu was arrested and later disappeared from the police station. In the hope of justice for Rajakannu, she sought the help of Chandru, who investigated the matter and brought justice to the woman and her family. Gnanavel met the lawyer and interacted with him for several weeks to understand more about the case. The development team took a workshop from actor–director R. Madhavan on quickly making a biopic of a prominent individual, following the actor's work on Rocketry: The Nambi Effect (2022).

The film's technical crew were composer Sean Roldan, editor Philomin Raj, videographer S. R. Kathir, production designer Jacki and stunt-coordinator duo Anbariv. The film's title Jai Bhim, which is based on a slogan used by followers of B. R. Ambedkar, was announced on 23 July 2021 with a first-look release. The title was already taken by director Pa. Ranjith, a follower of Ambedkar's ideologies, and Suriya said Ranjith gave the film crew the title.

Casting

The project was formally announced in April 2021 with Suriya producing the film under the banner 2D Entertainment. Initially, Roshini Haripriyan was approached for the role of Sengeni but the role eventually went to Lijomol Jose. In May 2021, Malayalam film actor Rajisha Vijayan signed for a pivotal role after her Tamil debut with Karnan (2021). K. Manikandan signed to portray Rajakannu after agreeing to Gnanavel's condition of spending an extended time with Irular tribespeople to learn their lifestyle without committing to other projects.

Filming

Principal photography began in Kodaikanal in mid-April 2021; Suriya joined the sets despite filming for Etharkkum Thunindhavan (2021) in Karaikudi. Because production of Etharkkum Thunindhavan was halted due to the COVID-19 pandemic, Suriya began working on Jai Bhim with the filming in Kodaikanal, which was also interrupted by the pandemic and the subsequent lockdown. In July 2021, shooting of the film resumed. Principal photography was completed by September 2021.

Post-production

In October 2021, the final copy of Jai Bhim was submitted to the Central Board of Film Certification, which gave the film an "A" (adults-only) certificate. It is the first time a Suriya-starrer was given this rating since Rakta Charitra 2.