Diwali may be a few days away. But big-ticket releases on the Indian OTT space are set to stream to ring in the festive spirit already. The Tamil courtroom drama Jai Bhim is among the much-expected films of the season. It is part of the four-film package that Amazon Prime Video signed with actor Suriya's production house 2D Entertainment early this year.
Directed by T J Gnanavel, Jai Bhim, apart from Suriya, features Prakash Raj, Rao Ramesh, Rajisha Vijayan, Manikandan, and Lijo Mol Jose in pivotal roles.
Suriya's previous release, Soorarai Pottru, on the life and business of (now defunct) Air Deccan's founder G R Gopinath, was one of the biggest successes all over India on the OTT circuit last year.
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What is Jai Bhim all about
Jai Bhim, as many would know, is a clarion call made famous by B R Ambedkar, one of the architects of the Indian Constitution, and a leader of the Dalits. It is no surprise then that the film Jai Bhim focuses on the trials and tribulations of a couple from the Adivasi Irular community (belonging to the Scheduled Tribes). The film is based on true events that happened in the 1990s in Tamil Nadu.
Suriya plays a conscientious advocate who fights enormous odds to bring justice to a community invisibilised by modern-day power politics.
But Suriya says Jai Bhim is not a commentary on today's politics. In an online interaction with journos ahead of the film's release, he said: "The film is more about what happened in 1995. It will inspire a lot of people in our society to have a different perspective on certain things. How the judiciary and the police department should be hand-in-hand to make things be in the right place, and bring justice."
Suriya said he was more than careful in playing this role as it involved real life happenings and it is about people from the marginalised community.
"For me, it is about how we want to celebrate our unsung heroes. The responsibility also comes with the story because it also deals with a tribal woman's fight for justice and what it takes for them to reach the High Court," he said.
The actor said that this film was not in his comfort zone. "It does not fall into the layout or pattern or sketch that any of my previous films were."
Jai Bhim has music by Sean Rolden, camera by S R Kadhir, editing by Philominraj, and art director by Kadhir.
Jai Bhim on Amazon Prime Video from November 2
Jai Bhim will stream on Amazon Prime Video from tomorrow (November 2). It is another major victory for the streamer as getting a Suriya-starrer directly on its platform is a big thing when theatres have opened with full capacity across the country.
Amazon Prime Video is available in India at no extra cost with Amazon Prime membership for Rs 999 annually or Rs 129 monthly, new customers can find out more at www.amazon.in/prime and subscribe to a free 30-day trial.
Amazon Prime Video, ever since it amped up its India content, has had good success. Its recent web series Mumbai Diaries, The Family Man -Season 2 and the Vidya Balan starrer Sherni and Akshay Kumar starrer Bell Bottom are blockbusters, to use a mainstream description.
In Bollywood, Amazon Prime Video is producing the Akshay Kumar film Ram Setu, and is also currently making Shahid Kapoor's debut into digital space through a web series.
Amazon Prime Video recently had an 8-day film extravaganza for its Prime Day. It also had many big premieres, especially Malayalam films like Maalik, Kuruthi and Saara's.
Suriya's previous production, the Tamil film Udanpirappe was also released on Amazon Prime Video last month. But it did not go down well with the critics and lay fans alike.
