What prompted Chambal’s title

When Jacob Varghese had the script of Chambal ready, he had a title in mind — ‘Subhash’, after Subhas Chandra Bose. Why? “There is a lot in the story that one can relate with Subhas Chandra Bose. My lead character (played by Sathish Ninasam) is like the freedom fighter — he also fights for people and stands up for their rights. So, I wanted to name the film Subhash, but the title wasn’t available,” says Jacob.
When thinking about alternative title, the team chose Chambal.Why? “We have used Chambal as a metaphor. A lot of dacoits, such as Phoolan Devi and Paan Singh Tomar, were from Chambal, and we have connected that to the concrete jungle that is Bengaluru, and the different kinds of dacoits that one finds here,” says Jacob. And while he couldn’t name his film ‘Subhash’, Jacob made that the name of his lead character.