ATM attack survivor watches her trauma unfold on big screen

BENGALURU: To see the most traumatic moments of your life on the big screen is not easy. But after watching a film which features the gruesome attack she survived, banker

Jyothi Uday

came out of the theatre with a smile.

More than a month after its release, Kannada film Shuddhi (purification), parts of which tell the story of the vicious 2013 ATM attack, was screened specially for the survivor Jyothi. Although the attack is a small part of the film, it is one of the most discussed aspects.

For Jyothi, it was a surreal experience, like many others in the theatre. The audienced gasped in anticipation when Jyothi’s character walked towards the ATM, even though the CCTV footage of the real-life attack was aired for hours on channels. Some closed their eyes when the attacker pulled down the shutter in the movie. Jyothi, accompanied by her daughter, watched the scene unravel with rapt attention.

While the movie gives the attacker a different fate, the real-life culprit

Madhukar Reddy

was caught late last year after he eluded police for over three years. Interestingly, the day the movie released, Jyothi stood in front of Reddy — who rained blows on her with a machete — in Parappana Agrahara Central Jail for the identification parade. “Yes, it’s him. I can recognize his face,” she told cops that day.

Adarsh Eshwarappa, director of Shuddhi, said there was no scene by scene comparison of what happened in real life and reel life, but Jyothi was emotional. “She said a day before identifying the attacker, she was scared. But then she said she was happy to be alive to identify him. She showed the courage we wanted to show through the movie,” he added.

‘More such movies should be made’

After the screening, while talking to the makers of the film, Jyothi said she was not a weak victim but a strong survivor. “This movie talks about how strong women can be; everyone should watch it. More such films should be made,” she said in her brief statement to media.