IPS officer D. Roopa, who hit the headlines for exposing the alleged preferential treatment given to AIADMK interim general secretary V.K. Sasikala in Bengaluru Central Prison at Parappana Agrahara, is in the news for ‘reel’ reasons now.
Filmmaker A.M.R. Ramesh, known for making movies based on real-life incidents, is all set to make one on Ms. Roopa. Top stars in the film industry, either Anushka Shetty or Nayanatara, will play the role of the officer in the untitled bi-lingual (Kannada and Tamil) movie. “Besides exposing how prisoners, including Sasikala and Abdul Karim Telgi, had been allegedly receiving special treatment at the prison, the film will also focus on the officer taking on the corrupt system and deliberating on how she built her career,” Mr. Ramesh told The Hindu.
Mr. Ramesh has already met Ms. Roopa twice to get an authentic account of the prison life.
In a Facebook post, Ms. Roopa appreciated films made by Mr. Ramesh, including Cynide and Attahasa, which are about Rajiv Gandhi’s assassination and forest brigand Veerappan, respectively. “That you found an interesting story in my whistle-blowing act makes me happy and humbled,” she has said.
Mr. Ramesh said: “I’m researching on the subject and meeting prison officials, whom I know personally to get first-hand information. The script will be ready by September.”
On what inspired him, he says: “It was her report exposing bribe allegedly paid by Sasikala to get special privileges, including a special kitchen inside the jail complex, and the thriving drug supply in the jail,” he said.
Mr. Ramesh, who had interviewed many people connected with the Rajiv Gandhi assassination and also Veerappan aides in the prison for his two previous films, said he was totally convinced that Ms. Roopa’s report speaks the truth and there was no exaggeration. “I’m also waiting for the report of the fact-finding committee headed by retired IAS officer Vinay Kumar, who is probing into alleged irregularities and preferential treatment extended to Sasikala and others, before finalising the script,” he added.