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Akshay Kumar stars as Sir Chettur Sankaran Nair in Kesari 2, highlighting Nair's legal battle against...
Read More Akshay Kumar takes on the role of Sir Chettur Sankaran Nair – a nationalist, legal luminary, and fierce critic of British rule in his upcoming project, Kesari 2. At the film’s press conference in Mumbai, the actor reacted to BJP leader Rajeev Chandrasekhar’s recent X (formerly Twitter) post, which claimed that Congress neglected its former leader Nair’s lasting legacy. Without taking any names, Akshay Kumar said that he wants everyone to watch Kesari 2.
He said at the film’s press conference, “I want them to at least watch this movie and realise their mistake. The other things will flow automatically from their mouth because the apology is bound to happen. It will flow on its own.
I just want the British government and King Charles to watch the film. They should see it." Earlier this week, Chandrasekhar claimed that Congress neglected the party’s former luminaries such as Sankaran Nair, Subhash Chandra Bose, Sardar Vallabhai Patel, and Dr Ambedkar to serve the interests of the “Congress dynasty.
" In a long post on X, Chandrasekhar wrote about Nair’s contributions as a prominent lawyer and his legal battle against Michael O’Dwyer after the Jallianwala Bagh massacre. He claimed Congress neglects the legacy of its former leaders. “One more example of how the Congress party airbrushes leaders from its history, just as Subhash Bose, Sardar Vallabhai Patel, Dr Ambedkar, etc, and so many others to humour the Congress dynasty," the BJP leader wrote.
“Chettur Sankaran Nair was a prominent Indian lawyer, statesman, and former president of the Indian National Congress (INC) in 1897 – but has been erased out of the Congress history. He is remembered even today for his legal battles–like his case against Michael O’Dwyer, who perpetrated the Jallianwala Bagh massacre," the BJP leader added. Chandrasekhar noted that Nair’s views reflected his liberal ideals and strong constitutional beliefs.
“As a Malayalee, I believe that it’s shameful the way he has been neglected in Congress and Kerala’s history," he further said. Who is Sir Chettur Sankaran Nair, who fought against the British empire? Sir Chettur Sankaran Nair started his career as a lawyer at the Madras High Court in 1880 and was later appointed to a committee tasked with investigating matters in the Malabar region. His outstanding contributions earned him the role of Advocate General, followed by promotion as a judge.
In 1908, he was appointed a permanent judge of the Madras High Court. He held the position until 1915. He resigned from the position after the Jallianwala Bagh bloodbath, leaving the British authorities embarassed.
In 1922, Sankaran Nair authored a book titled Gandhi and Anarchy, in which he openly criticised Michael O’Dwyer, the former Lieutenant Governor of Punjab during the Jallianwala Bagh massacre. Following his dismissal from his post, O’Dwyer returned to England and sued Nair for defamation. Their courtroom clash in London’s High Court forms the crux of Kesari Chapter 2.
The film, starring Akshay Kumar, R Madhavan and Ananya Panday, releases on April 18..
