Criminal Justice, Bandaa, Court: The evolving landscape of courtroom dramas in Indian cinema

A courtroom provides enough theatrics for cinema, with filmmakers often utilising (and at times, delightfully exaggerating) judicial fundamentals: the curious suspect, the sardonic attorney, the dramatic cry of “I object, your honour!” Together, they create stories that thrill, move, and inspire.Beyond the adrenaline rush of attorneys battling for justice or the tension of edge-of-the-seat arguments, courtroom dramas are remembered for their sharp, quotable dialogues, from Bollywood’s “Tareekh pe tareekh” (Damini) to Hollywood’s “You can’t handle the truth!” (A Few Good Men, 1992) At their core, legal dramas thrive on wordplay as much as they do on moral conflict.In recent years, the genre has found fresh resonance. ZEE5's Sirf Ek Bandaa Kaafi Hai (2023), led by Manoj Bajpayee, and Netflix’s Maamla Legal Hai (2024), starring Ravi Kishan, reminded audiences of the courtroom’s pull. Hindi cinema has long given us mainstream entertainers like Jolly LLB (2013, 2017), Oh My God (2012) and Pink (2016), as well as award-winning gems like Court (2014) and Aligarh (2015). These weren’t just gripping dramas; they posed weighty questions about justice, social issues, and the flaws of our legal system.‘The courtroom is inherently dramatic’“Legal dramas have a timeless appeal,” says Bajpayee. “They tap into something very primal: the pursuit of justice. The courtroom is inherently dramatic, with its tension, high stakes, and the power of words over action.”For writer Apurva Asrani (Shahid, Criminal Justice, Aligarh), the appeal lies in the sense of closure. “We love debate… when we see on screen that justice is served, somewhere our hope is rekindled.” He adds, “Court kacheri ka fear is so real that many people don’t even want to fight. That’s why Criminal Justice connects. Madhav Mishra is compassionate, understands the system, has relationships with clerks and constables… he is a common man and that’s his triumph.”No more 'Order, order' and oath-taking on the GitaIn earlier decades, Hindi films often played up the theatrics with the judge shouting “Order! Order!”, the lawyer thumping the desk and calling surprise gawaah, and witnesses conveniently fainting at the right moment. Courtrooms provided ample playing space for melodrama.But the last decade has seen a shift. Filmmakers have moved away from the melodramatic tropes like the dramatic oath-taking on the Gita, and the booming “Judge sahab, mera muwakkil ko ba-izzat bari kiya jaaye” to more realistic depictions of legal proceedings. In Aligarh, the quiet dignity of Manoj Bajpayee’s professor and the restraint in courtroom scenes carried more weight than raised voices ever could. Section 375 (2019) dissected consent and legal loopholes with sharp precision, while Mulk (2018) showed how personal and political biases seep into justice. Chaitanya Tamhane’s Court (2014), meanwhile, showed the everyday banality and bureaucracy of lower courts.Asrani says that while working on Criminal Justice, “We refrained from showing an ‘order order’ courtroom. We wanted to keep it accessible to people who may not understand legal jargon but immediately connect with emotion.”Tamil director Balaji Selvaraj, whose ZEE5 series Sattamum Needhiyum drew praise, adds, “The key was staying rooted in honest emotions. We avoided exaggerated reactions and let the silences and small details do the work.”From Suits and Boston Legal to Criminal Justice and Guilty MindsIndian audiences who once looked towards the West for legal dramas like Suits or Boston Legal now have homegrown titles that match the standard. With Pink (2016), Amitabh Bachchan made “No means no” a slogan. Jolly LLB (2013) used humour and satire to talk about systemic flaws, while Jai Bhim (2021) in Tamil shook audiences with its unflinching portrayal of caste, custodial violence and one lawyer’s dogged fight.These films are nothing new to the audience and go back almost to the beginning of cinema's history. Basu Chatterjee’s Ek Ruka Hua Faisla (1986), a scene-by-scene adaptation of Sidney Lumet’s 12 Angry Men (1957), remains a cult classic, dissecting personal prejudices and class differences through the story of a 12-member jury debating a teenager’s fate. The film raises questions about how easily we are swayed by preconceived notions.In 1993, Damini presented powerful courtroom cinema. Sunny Deol’s thunderous “Tareekh pe tareekh” monologue still resonates as a stamp of India’s slow-moving justice system. Similarly, in the 2013 legal drama Jolly LLB, the exhausted judge (Saurabh Shukla) reminds us that more than three crore cases are pending in the Indian courts. Also, when a poor man tells Jolly (Arshad Warsi), "Iss desh mein gareebo ko insaaf bahut mehenga milta hai," it reminds us how sordid the reality is. Maybe that is why it is so satisfying to see Jolly succeed against a manipulative Rajpal (Boman Irani) on celluloid.'Court kachehri ka fear is so real'For many Indians, the idea of entering a courtroom itself is intimidating. As Asrani points out, “Court kacheri ka fear is so real that many people don’t even want to fight. That’s why Criminal Justice strikes a chord.”The success of Pankaj Tripathi's Madhav Mishra lies in his ordinariness. “He plays a fair game, is compassionate and understands the system well,” Asrani says. “He has relationships with constables, clerks, the very people who actually keep the wheels turning. He is not a very dramatic person. He’s a common man, and that’s his triumph.”In his next, Asrani would be shifting the focus away from grandstanding lawyers to the invisible ecosystem — the clerks, stenographers, police constables, and minor staff who know how the system actually runs. "Each one has a story and influence since they know how things work. All across, we know the system is broken and these are the people who help you navigate," says the writer.An OTT boost to Indian legal dramasThe surge of OTT has been instrumental in keeping courtroom dramas buzzing. According to Ormax Media, Criminal Justice: A Family Matter was the most-watched streaming original in India in the first half of 2025. Raghavendra Hunsur, Chief Content Officer at ZEE5, says the demand is only growing. “The legal drama genre continues to find strong traction. Audiences are drawn to the courtroom as a space where justice is debated, social issues are unpacked, and complex characters find resolution.”‘You can’t handle the truth!’: Hollywood’s courtroom legacyThe fascination with courtroom dramas goes far beyond India. Across eras and geographies, the genre captivates audiences by pulling them directly into the proceedings, making them feel like participants in the trial. As Saugata Mukherjee, Head of Content at SonyLIV, puts it, “One of the things which makes courtroom dramas very exciting is the fact that the audience is engaged almost as a character, they feel they can crack the case.”Sidney Lumet’s 12 Angry Men (1957), set almost entirely in a jury room, proved how gripping dialogue, character, and moral conflict could be without a single flashback or chase sequence. Gregory Peck’s Atticus Finch in To Kill a Mockingbird (1962) became a moral compass for generations, his calm dismantling of prejudice inspiring lawyers, activists, and cinephiles alike. Later, films like The Verdict (1982) and Philadelphia (1993) showed how the genre could mix legal process with human stories of redemption, discrimination, and courage. Explaining this pull, Lumet said in 1965, “While the goal of all movies is to entertain, the kind of film in which I believe goes one step further. It compels the spectator to examine one facet or another of his own conscience. It stimulates thought and sets the mental juices flowing.”Television arguably gave the genre a stronger run as it allowed characters and cases to develop gradually. The Good Wife, How to Get Away with Murder, and Suits turned legal jargon, razor-sharp arguments, and morally grey lawyers into pop culture phenomena.