JAI BHIM Review

Jai Bhim is a 2021 Legal-Investigation thriller, written and directed by T.J. Gnanavel, starring Suriya, Lijomol Jose, K. Manikandan, Rajisha Vijayan and many others.

Rajakannu (Manikandan) and Sengeni (Lijomol) live in a tribal village along with their child. As their ancestors did, they used to catch snakes in their villages. A snake was intruding into the residence of a well-known and wealthy family in a nearby village, and Rajakannu went there to find it. Somebody else soon stole all their money and ornaments after that. But Rajakannu was accused of stealing the belongings by the family. Rajakannu, meanwhile, was out of town to find a job. As they couldn’t find Rajakannu, the police arrested Sengeni, Rajakannu’s pregnant wife, along with some of Rajakannu’s friends. Later, when they find Rajakannu, the cops torture him and his friends to make them admit they are the ones who stole. After Sengeni discovers that Rajakannu and his friends have gone missing, she approaches Advocate Chandru (Suriya). As a comrade and someone who has always supported tribals and the poor, Chandru moves legally through the court and start investigating with the help of IG Perumalsamy (Prakash Raj) and Mythra (Rajisha Vijayan). The rest of the movie shows their fight for justice and the supremacy of the law over community differences.

Jai Bhim explores the struggles of tribal communities across India in the early 80s and 90s. Tribal communities are seldom provided with benefits and facilities by the government. The police held them responsible for pending cases in the surroundings, as shown in the film. The fact that Jai Bhim is as per the actual incident and all the characters were real makes us even more shocked. The movie is well-made and makes us reflect on the path we have travelled. Yet, tribal communities are underdeveloped, and they are dealing with a lot of racial discrimination from the public. At least their votes are more highly valued than earlier on.

It is Lijomol Jose and Manikandan who steal the show in Jai Bhim. Their performances are stunning, and Lijomol is a real star. Jai Bhim will dominate many national award categories this year. They deserve it more than any other movie. Having seen Suriya’s marvellous performance in Soorarai Pottru last year and repeating it in Jai Bhim this year, he is always the best actor when it comes to character-oriented movies. He plays Advocate Chandru, an ordinary but powerful man who speaks out against any social injustices. The character is the hero in this film. There are no fight scenes, romantic scenes, or punch dialogues. His screen presence makes this picture shine. Adv. Chandru is definitely one of his top 5 characters. Also, he deserves a lot of credit for producing this movie. The rest of the casts are commendable. Sean Roldan’s songs and BGM were great. It was technically flawless and had outstanding cinematography and editing. T.J. Gnanavel is the main hero. His quality of writing and storytelling is incredible. Each and every line of dialogue and scene is hard-hitting. The movie was all the way a perfect watch.

Jai Bhim will be staying for a while. The content will always remain within the viewers. It hasn’t completely changed even now, just better as compared to before.