The Indian government ordered streaming platform ZEE5 to remove the film Satluj on Sunday, July 5, 2026, citing security concerns.
The order came just two days after the movie's digital release, according to government sources and the film's producers.
Satluj stars popular actor Diljit Dosanjh as human rights activist Jaswant Singh Khalra.
Khalra investigated alleged enforced disappearances and extrajudicial killings by the Punjab Police during the region's separatist insurgency before disappearing himself in 1995.
The film, directed by Honey Trehan and produced by RSVP Movies, bypassed a traditional theatrical release to stream directly on ZEE5.
It had been in dispute with India's Central Board of Film Certification for three years over up to 127 proposed cuts.
A spokesperson for RSVP Movies confirmed the removal was on government orders, as reported by The Indian Express.
ZEE5 stated the film would be unavailable in India "until further notice" due to "current developments."
Lead actor Diljit Dosanjh addressed the removal during a live broadcast on social media. "My love and respect to all of you.
What I had already expected is exactly what happened," he said.
"I thought the film might get banned when [government] offices opened on Monday, but I didn't know it would happen as early as Sunday evening."
Dosanjh explained that the filmmakers intentionally avoided large-scale promotional campaigns because of intense political and legal scrutiny.
"If we had promoted it, the film would definitely not have been released at all," he said.
Director Honey Trehan had previously expressed frustration with the censorship board's demands to remove real-world references and scenes of police violence.
"Anything that was a reference to reality was to be removed," Trehan told Scroll and New Lines Magazine.
Following the government takedown order, he told The Indian Express, "I am at a loss right now."
The sudden removal drew sharp condemnation from political figures in Punjab, where the historical memory of the insurgency remains deeply sensitive ahead of the 2027 Assembly election.
Shiromani Akali Dal president Sukhbir Singh Badal criticized the intervention, labeling it an assault on collective memory, truth, and freedom of expression.
