Director Honey Trehan saw a long battle to ensure his film Satluj, earlier called Panjab 95, gets a release in the manner he intended. The film, based on the life of human rights activist Jaswant Singh Khalra, released on Zee5, uncut, this Friday. But it was unceremoniously taken down on Sunday with the streamer mentioning ‘developments’ in a statement. The filmmaker, however, remains hopeful that things could turn around, as evidenced by his brief reaction to the shadow ban on his film.
Honey Trehan reacts to Satluj being removed from Zee5
Satluj stars Diljit Dosanjh as the late Khalra, who was instrumental in investigating the cremation of thousands of unidentified bodies in Punjab during a 10-year period from 1984 to 1994. The film was controversial for its take on events in the state during the 80s and 90s. Its release, this Friday, was seen as a pleasant surprise by many. Hence, the removal came as a shock too.
On Sunday evening, Zee5 issued a statement informing viewers that the film is 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. We are deeply grateful to every viewer who chose to subscribe, watch and champion the film. Your love and support have meant a great deal to us and to everyone who brought this story to life. 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 said.
Hours later, Honey Trehan shared the statement on Instagram Stories with a short message in Punjabi: ‘Tera bhana meetha lage (God’s will seems sweet).’ Bhana is a Punjabi word that loosely translates to divine command or fate, something that God has Himself willed. The message of hope was punctuated by a folded hands emoji. The film’s lead Diljit Dosanjh was more philosophical in his reaction, comparing the shadow ban to Khalra’s disappearance and killing.
All about Satluj
In the movie, Dosanjh essays the role of Khalra, who investigated the cremation of thousands of unidentified bodies in Punjab during a 10-year period from 1984 to 1994, before 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. The film is produced by Trehan, Abhishek Chaubey and Ronnie Screwvala, under the banners MacGuffin Pictures and RSVP. It also features Arjun Rampal, Kanwaljit Singh, Suvinder Vicky and Geetika Vidya Ohlyan in key roles.