The film had to go through an unusually long and difficult path to release.
It was originally calledexternal Gallugara is a Punjabi term associated with some of the darkest episodes in Sikh history.
We are talking about the massacres of Sikhs by Mughal forces in 1746 and by the forces of the Afghan ruler Ahmad Shah Durrani in 1762.
Director Honey Trehan said India’s Central Board of Film Certification (CBFC), the government body that certifies films for public release in cinemas, asked the film’s makers to change the title during the certification process, but did not publicly explain the reasons for this.
The film was later retitled Punjab ’95, a reference to the year Khalra disappeared.
The film was supposed to premiere at the 2023 Toronto International Film Festival, but the producers pulled it. externalwhile certification issues in India remained unresolved. The festival has not publicly linked the recall to the certification dispute.
The dispute centered on a long list of changes sought by the CBFC. Trehan toldexternal News site Scroll reported in 2025 that the board’s objections initially numbered 21, but eventually grew to 127 proposed cuts.
“Anything that was a reference to reality had to be removed,” he said, arguing that the changes would have fundamentally changed the film.
Trehan toldexternal Last year, New Lines Magazine reported that after several rounds of review, the CBFC had demanded changes including a new title, removal of references to Khalra and editing of scenes depicting police violence.
He said the board also disputed some of the film’s factual claims and warned that it could cause law and order problems in Punjab.
The filmmakers challenged the CBFC’s claims in the Bombay High Court but later withdrew them.external they decided to accept the board’s changes in hopes of gaining certification, the Hindu newspaper reported. Trehan later said the list of required cuts and changes continues to grow despite efforts to resolve the dispute.
The CBFC has not publicly commented on his story. The BBC has asked the board for comment.
These unresolved issues meant the project remained in limbo for nearly three years.
However, last week, the makers announced that the film will not go on floors and will instead release directly on ZEE5 under the new title Satluj.
On the day Satluj landed on ZEE5, Trehan said that the film was released “without any cuts or compromises”.external in the form originally intended by the filmmakers, although they failed to retain the title Punjab ’95.
Films released theatrically in India must be certified by the CBFC under the Cinematograph Act, but films released directly on streaming platforms do not require its approval.
Instead, streaming platforms like ZEE5 are governed by the Information Technology Rules 2021, which prescribe age ratings, a code of ethics and a grievance redressal mechanism, but do not exempt them from takedown orders under Indian law.
Following the removal of the film from the streaming platform for Indian audiences, Trehan told The Indian Express: “I am at a loss now. I don’t know how to react to this development of events.”
Meanwhile, ZEE5 said it supports the film and the “creative vision behind it” and “hopes to bring it back soon”, without giving any timeline.
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