Satluj arrived on ZEE5 India on July 3, only to be taken down two days later, leaving many viewers surprised. Now, Diljit Dosanjh has finally addressed the controversy. During a livestream with fans, the actor revealed that the team had expected this possibility from the beginning, which is why they avoided promoting the film before its release. He also said that despite years of fighting to bring Satluj to audiences, he never sought support from either Bollywood or the Punjabi film industry.
Diljit Dosanjh says he never asked Bollywood for help
During a live session on Monday, Diljit Dosanjh revealed that the team intentionally avoided promoting Satluj because they feared it might never make it to audiences if announced in advance. Their only focus, he said, was ensuring Jaswant Singh Khalra’s story reached people, even if for a brief period.
He also stressed that the makers never sought support from either the Punjabi film industry or Bollywood during the film’s years-long struggle for release. “We’ve been fighting to get this film released for the last three to four years. We never went to anyone asking for support. I never asked anyone from my industry, nor did I ever ask anyone in Bollywood to help release our film, support us, or stand by us. We fought this battle ourselves,” Diljit Dosanjh said in Punjabi.
He added that everyone is fighting their own battles, and for his team, the biggest victory was getting the film into the hands of the audience. “Everyone feels their own struggle is the biggest. Whatever work you’re in, everyone is fighting their own battle on their own platform. We too brought our film to the audience on our own, got it released, and made sure it reached the people.”
Addressing the removal
During the livestream, Diljit Dosanjh also sent out a strong message, saying, “You can trouble me as much as you want. I am with Punjab till the day I die.” The actor said he is finally at peace because the film has reached audiences, even if only briefly. According to him, many viewers have already downloaded Satluj, ensuring its message will continue to live on.
He said, “But now I am satisfied that the film has reached every household. You have the film, people have downloaded it, and today the new youth is talking about it. I saw a video—a very lovely video that I watched after waking up this morning—where the film is being screened inside a Gurdwara Sahib. So now I am satisfied that the film has reached you. The hard work that everyone put in, it was very important for that effort to reach you, and it has reached you. I am deeply satisfied by this. Glory to the Almighty. I thank everyone and congratulate the entire team because our work, what we wanted to say and how we wanted to say it, has reached the people exactly that way.”
Speaking about the film being taken down, Diljit Dosanjh said he believes it cannot truly be erased once people have already watched and shared it. “So now I feel a lot of relief that finally the film is with you. Now it is your film; now it cannot be stopped. This is the people’s film now; you can’t stop it now. I feel those behind this are innocent or uneducated to think that once something comes online, it can just be deleted like that,” he added.
ZEE5 removes Satluj after two days
The version of Satluj that briefly streamed on ZEE5 India was the uncut version approved by Jaswant Singh Khalra’s family. After removing the film from its platform, ZEE5 issued a statement reaffirming its support for both the film and its makers. “The response to Satluj since its release has been truly overwhelming. We are deeply grateful to every viewer who chose to subscribe, watch and champion the film… At ZEE5, we stand firmly by Satluj and the creative vision behind it. We believe powerful storytelling has the ability to inspire, endure and leave a lasting impact,” the statement released on Sunday read.
The streamer also confirmed that the film would remain unavailable in India for now. “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.”
What is Satluj about?
Directed by Honey Trehan, Satluj tells the story inspired by Jaswant Singh Khalra, the human rights activist who exposed the alleged disappearance of thousands of Sikh youths during Punjab’s militancy period in the 1980s and 1990s. By examining records at cremation grounds across the state, Khalra uncovered evidence that pointed to alleged illegal cremations and fake encounters, bringing global attention to the issue.
On September 6, 1995, Khalra was abducted from outside his home in Amritsar’s Kabir Park. He was allegedly tortured and killed, and his body is believed to have been thrown into the Harike canal. Several Punjab Police officers were convicted in the case by a Patiala court in 2005. The Punjab and Haryana High Court later upheld those convictions and enhanced their sentences to life imprisonment.
The film is produced by Ronnie Screwvala’s RSVP Movies in association with MacGuffin Pictures. Along with Diljit Dosanjh, the cast includes Arjun Rampal, Kanwaljit Singh, Suvinder Vicky, Geetika Vidya Ohlyan and Varun Badola.