Camera in the courtroom: How live-streaming alters the way we look at the court

The legendary actor Sivaji Ganesan once halted work on a movie after the director revealed that it was not being filmed on a set created by the crew but in a real courtroom. The actor chided the director for being reckless about a place that commands reverence. It took much convincing to get Ganesan to get back into action.

Citizens have for long known that the physical space of a court of law is where justice is delivered. But despite this, the judicial process carried a bit of mystery, giving courts an enigmatic aura.

That shroud is slowly being lifted now. For months, the Supreme Court has been live-streaming important cases to the public. What people read on newspapers and websites in textual form has hit their screens in dramatic audiovisual form. A recent example was the Constitution bench proceedings in the marriage equality case in May.

But what does this access do to people’s perception of the court? Is the judicial process now completely transparent or are we witnessing the reshaping of an institution?

Seeing the court differently

Courtrooms have evolved over the years. When monarchs exercised direct authority over judges, courtrooms were public spaces. Judges were accountable to the political establishment and any divergence in opinion resulted in the decision...

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