Former Universiti Utara Malaysia student KS Bawani who shot to Internet stardom after the viral 'listen, listen, listen' video three years ago was called to the Bar on Wednesday. The proud young lady is now a full-fledged lawyer.

Bawani garnered fame while a UUM student in December 2012 after her war of words with Suara Wanita 1Malaysia (SW1M) chairperson Sharifah Zohra Jabeen at a university forum where she argued the merits of pro-electoral reform rally Bersih and free education.

The debate was, however, short-lived as instead of engaging with Bawani, Sharifah admonished her and uttered the infamous 'listen, listen, listen' spell which became the stuff of Internet meme, before seizing the microphone from the former to stop her from speaking.

The video of the exchange went viral after it was uploaded on YouTube.

Most netizens supported Bawani and criticised Sharifah (photo), scorning the SW1M chairperson for her tirade, dubbing her as 'Kak Listen'.

Three years after the incident, Bawani completed her studies in October last year and has recently completed her nine-month chambering at a local law firm.

On Wednesday, Bawani went before the Ipoh High Court to be admitted into the Malaysian Bar.

However, she will have to wait between two and three weeks before she is issued with her practising certificate through the Bar Council.

The 30-year-old started her law studies in UUM in 2011 and spent five years completing her law degree.

Though what many do not know, is that she already holds an undergraduate degree in psychology from Universiti Kebangsaan Malaysia (UKM), which she obtained in 2008.

The double-degree holder, however had to struggle to finish her law studies, which is a far cry from her original field.

Bawani struggled on as the support from netizens since the "listen" incident kept her motivated.

Burden of expectation

But while the outpouring of public support kept her on the ball, it also added to the burden of expectation that she had to bear, more so now that people know that she is a lawyer.

Nevertheless, the feisty young lady soldiers on, viewing the practice of law as her arena to champion human rights as well as to fight for the workers, farmers and address injustice in society.

Indeed, fighting for human rights and the plight of workers has been her focus all this while, especially when she was active in socialist party PSM prior to her law studies in UUM.

Bawani handled a lot of cases that involved human and workers rights during her stint in PSM.

The more cases she accepted, the more Bawani believed that the extent of the exploitation of the workers by the capitalist system is getting worse, the realisation finally leading her to read law so that she can better serve the working class.

While her involvement with PSM led to her becoming a lawyer, she does not seem to be jumping on the political bandwagon, making use of her skills and abilities to help the disenfranchised instead.

The newly-frocked lawyer resigned from her post as PSM Youth chief in December last year, though she still maintains her status as a member.

And despite some who want her to stand for public office, Bawani did not exhibit intentions to contest in any elections, concentrating instead on gaining more experience in her new legal career.

In retrospect, Bawani must have appreciated those who uploaded the video on YouTube as it not only raised her online profile, but also highlighted the issue of free education.

Indeed until today, she still continues to advocate the government to provide free primary, secondary and tertiary education for the rakyat, something that the younger generation will hopefully continue to fight for.