Born during the late Qing Dynasty, So Chan was from Nanhai District, Foshan, Guangdong, or Hunan according to one source, he was skilled in unarmed Chinese martial arts skills in Drunken Eight Immortals Boxing and Shaolin staff said to be taught by the Shaolin monk Chan Fook, and also Brutal boxing. He formulated the unusual Golden Bowl and Iron Chopsticks technique, which involved the use of an iron bowl on one hand to provoke the opponent and striking the opponent's acupuncture points with the iron chopsticks on another hand. He was a wanderer and made a living performing martial arts and acrobatics with his younger sister in the streets of Guangdong. He also taught martial arts at Sancheng Community Training Centre in Guangzhou and would later known as one of the Ten Tigers of Canton. So exchanged ideas with So Hak-fu, a fellow martial artist of the Ten Tigers of Canton, and imparted the technique of Golden Bowl and Iron Chopsticks along with some of his Drunken Boxing skills to him. He also exchanged ideas with two other Ten Tigers martial artists Leung Kwan and Wong Kei-ying as well. According to a folklore, So Chan taught Wong Fei-hung in Drunken boxing. It was assumed that So was believed to have died during the early reign of the Guangxu Emperor.
He was first portrayed by Liu Chi-wai in at least six black-and-white Wong Fei-hung films starring Kwan Tak-hing from 1950 to 1961. He was portrayed by Lam Kau in the 1953 black-and-white films The Beggar Named Su, The Swordsman And The Beauty, and Revenge of the Beggar Named Su. He was portrayed by Yuen Siu-tien in the 1978 filmDrunken Master, and Yuen was often associated with the character Beggar So ever since. He was portrayed by Kwok Choi-hon in the 1978 film Ten Tigers of Shaolin. He was portrayed by Lau Kar-leung in the 1978 film Heroes of the East. He was portrayed by Yuen Siu-tien again in the 1979 filmStory of Drunken Master. Yuen went on to reprise the role in the 1979 film Dance of the Drunk Mantis. He was portrayed by Philip Kwok in the 1979 film Ten Tigers from Kwangtung. Yuen Siu-tien reprised the role for the last time only as a cameo in the opening credits of the 1979 film The World of the Drunken Master, with Lee Yi-min and Yu Chung-chiu portrayed as the younger and old Beggar So respectively. Yuen supposed to have a reprisal role of So Chan in the 1979 film Magnificent Butcher, he however, died on 8 January 1979 as production of the film began. The portrayal of So Chan in this film was taken over by Fan Mei-sheng. He was portrayed by Chow Yun-fat in the 1982 TVBtelevision drama seriesThe Legend of Master So. He was portrayed by Gordon Liu in the 1985 film Young Vagabound. He was portrayed by Stephen Chow in the 1992 filmKing of Beggars. He was portrayed by Donnie Yen in the 1993 film Heroes Among Heroes. He was portrayed by Cheng Pei-pei in the 1996 television seriesWong Fei Hung Series: The Final Victory. He was portrayed by Lam Chi-ho in the 1999 ATV television drama seriesTen Tigers Of Guangdong. He was portrayed by Felix Wong in the 2000 television drama series The Legend of Master Soh. He was portrayed by Pu Ye Dong in the 2005 television drama series Kung Fu Beggar. He was portrayed by Vincent Zhao in the 2010 film True Legend. He was portrayed by an opera actor Zhang Xinyi of the Xiuqin Opera Troupe in the opera show Beggar So during the Kaohsiung Spring Art Festival 2016. He was portrayed by Jun Cao in the 2016 filmMaster of the Drunken Fist: Beggar So.
