Sukhbir Badal slams Satluj ban: 'Punjab deserves to confront its past with honesty'
The Diljit Dosanjh-starrer film, originally titled ‘Punjab 95’, was released in India on streaming service ZEE5 on 3 July. However, two days later, it was pulled down and made unavailable on the platform.'
Shiromani Akali Dal (SAD) chief Sukhbir Singh Badal has slammed the removal of Diljit Dosanjh-starrer ‘Satluj’ from ZEE5 OTT platform, saying Punjab deserves to confront its past with honesty, not suppression.
The film, originally titled ‘Punjab 95’, was released in India on streaming service ZEE5 on 3 July. However, two days later, it was pulled down and made unavailable on the platform.
The film, however, remains available to stream abroad throughZEE5 Global.
Badal, the former deputy chief minister of Punjab, said he was shocked and saddened by the "arbitrary removal of Satluj from #ZEE5 in India". This is not mere censorship, it is an assault on our collective memory, truth, and freedom of expression, he said.
"I strongly condemn this move. Punjab deserves to confront its past with honesty, not suppression," Badal said in a post on X.
"A powerful film that courageously unveils Punjab's painful history and honours the supreme sacrifice of S. Jaswant Singh Ji Khalra cannot be silenced this way," Badal said.
Based on Jaswant Singh Khalra
The film, based on the life of human rights activist Jaswant Singh Khalra, was stuck in censorship for over three years. The Honey Trehan-directed movie was released without any cuts, but on Sunday evening ZEE5 shared a statement to inform viewers that it's no longer available in India.
"In light of the current developments, 'Satluj' will be unavailable in India until further notice. We remain committed to exploring every appropriate avenue through due process to bring the film back to our audiences at the earliest opportunity," the streamer said in a statement.
In the movie, Dosanjh plays Khalra, who investigated the cremation of thousands of unidentified bodies in Punjab during a 10-year period from 1984 to 1994, before himself disappearing in 1995. In 2005, four Punjab Police personnel were convicted for his abduction and murder and sentenced to seven years in prison. Two years later, the Punjab and Haryana High Court enhanced their sentence to life imprisonment.
2023 Toronto International Film Festival
In 2023, the movie was scheduled to have its world premiere at the Toronto International Film Festival (TIFF) but was removed from the line-up without any official statement from the organisers.
The social drama had run into trouble with the Central Board of Film Certification (CBFC), which had reportedly asked for an unprecedented 127 cuts. The delay in getting a clearance from the censor board forced the makers to postpone planned releases.
With its earlier title of "Punjab '95", the movie was slated for a worldwide release on February 7, 2025, without any cuts, except in India. But that release also did not happen.
(With agency inputs)
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Gulam Jeelani is Political Desk Editor at LiveMint with over 16 years of experience covering national and international politics. Based in New Delhi, Jeelani delivers impactful political narratives through breaking stories, in-depth interviews, and analytical pieces at LiveMint since February 2024. The expertise in video production fuels his current responsibilities, which include curating content and conducting video interviews for an expanding digital audience.<br><br> Jeelani also travels during elections and key political events and has covered assembly elections in key states apart from national elections. He has previously worked with The Pioneer, Network18, India Today, News9Plus and Hindustan Times.<br><br> Jeelani’s tenure at LiveMint and previous experience at print and digital newsrooms have honed his skills in creating compelling text and video stories, explainers, and analysis that resonate with a diverse viewership.<br><br> Before moving to New Delhi in 2015, Jeelani was based in Uttar Pradesh, where he worked for five years as a reporter. In 2018, Jeelani was one of the two Indian journalists selected for the Alfred Friendly Fellowship in the US. There, he attended training workshops on reporting and data journalism, and he was attached to the Minneapolis Star Tribune in Minnesota, where he worked as a reporter.<br><br> Jeelani is a Bachelor's in Chemistry and holds a Masters Degree in journalism and mass communication from Aligarh Muslim University. Outside work, he enjoys poetry, cricket and movies.
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