A film starring Indian singer and actor Diljit Dosanjh has been removed from the ZEE5 streaming platform in India just two days after its release, reopening a dispute over a project that had already spent years caught in certification delays.
Satluj, inspired by the life of human rights activist Jaswant Singh Khalra, was made available on ZEE5 on Friday but was withdrawn for Indian viewers by Sunday. ZEE5 said in a statement that the film would remain unavailable in India “until further notice” because of “current developments”, but did not set out what those developments were.
The removal means the film is no longer officially available to viewers in India. The Indian Express quoted a spokesperson for RSVP Movies, the producer, as saying the film had been taken down on government orders. The Indian government has not publicly commented on the decision. The BBC reported that it had contacted the federal information and broadcasting ministry for a response.
Dosanjh addressed the removal in a live social media video, saying he had expected official intervention but had not anticipated that it would happen so soon. He said he had thought the film might face action when government offices opened on Monday, but that it was removed on Sunday evening.
He also said the uncertainty around the release was the reason the makers had not heavily promoted the film. According to Dosanjh, a wider publicity campaign could have prevented the film from being released at all. He added that he was still pleased some viewers had been able to watch it after years of delay.
Satluj follows an activist examining allegations of human rights abuses in Punjab during the separatist insurgency that affected the state from the early 1980s to the mid-1990s. Sikh militants seeking an independent Khalistan fought Indian security forces in a conflict that killed thousands of people.
During the government crackdown, human rights organisations accused security forces of arbitrary arrests, enforced disappearances and extrajudicial killings. Indian authorities denied wrongdoing at the time, saying strong security measures were required to bring the insurgency under control.
Khalra investigated allegations that victims had been secretly cremated without their families being informed and without proper records. He disappeared in 1995 and was later found to have been abducted and murdered. Several Punjab police officers were eventually convicted over their role in his abduction and killing.
The film was completed in 2022 but did not reach cinemas in India after a prolonged dispute with the Central Board of Film Certification, the government body that certifies films for theatrical release. It was originally titled Ghallughara, a Punjabi term associated with historical massacres of Sikhs in the 18th century.
Director Honey Trehan has said the certification board asked the makers to change the title, though the board did not publicly explain its reasoning. The film was later renamed Punjab ’95, referring to the year Khalra disappeared.
The film had been due to premiere at the 2023 Toronto International Film Festival, but the producers withdrew it while certification issues in India remained unresolved. The festival did not publicly say the withdrawal was linked to the dispute in India.
Trehan has said the certification process involved an expanding list of requested changes. In comments to Scroll, he said the objections initially numbered 21 and later rose to 127 proposed cuts. He argued that the changes sought would have substantially altered the film, particularly where it referred to real events.
In comments reported by New Lines Magazine, Trehan said the board had sought changes including a different title, removal of references to Khalra and edits to scenes showing police violence. He also said the board questioned some factual claims and raised concerns about possible law and order issues in Punjab.
The filmmakers challenged the certification demands in the Bombay High Court but later withdrew their petition, according to The Hindu, choosing instead to accept changes in the hope of securing certification. Trehan later said the requested alterations continued to grow despite those efforts. The certification board has not publicly responded to his account.
Last week the makers announced that the film would skip cinemas and go directly to streaming under the title Satluj. On the day of release, Trehan said the film had been made available without cuts or compromises, although the makers had not been able to keep the title Punjab ’95.
Indian films released in cinemas must be certified under the Cinematograph Act. Films released directly on streaming services do not require certification from the Central Board of Film Certification, but streaming platforms are covered by the Information Technology Rules, 2021. Those rules require age classification, a code of ethics and grievance procedures, and platforms can still face takedown directions under Indian law.
After the removal, Trehan told The Indian Express that he did not know how to respond to the development. ZEE5 said it stood by the film and its creative vision and hoped to bring it back, but gave no date for any possible return.
The case leaves Indian viewers without an official way to watch Satluj for now and adds to the wider debate over how politically sensitive films are handled across cinemas and streaming services in India. Until ZEE5 or the authorities provide further detail, the reason for the withdrawal and the prospects for the film’s return remain unclear.
