I followed these steps:
Added the black bars
-vf "scale=1920:1080:force_original_aspect_ratio=decrease,pad=1920:1080:(ow-iw)/2:(oh-ih)/2,setsar=1" Source:How to add black borders to video
Added the subtitles ("burned" it into the video)
ffmpeg -i "imput.mp4" -lavfi "subtitles=subtitles.srt:force_style='Alignment=0,OutlineColour=&H100000000,BorderStyle=3,Outline=1,Shadow=0,Fontsize=18,MarginL=5,MarginV=25'" -crf 1 -c:a copy "output.mp4" Source: ffmpeg subtitles alignment and position
Now I am stuck as to how to place the subtitles under the video or in the black screen.
Edit: Screenshot added to clarify