Diljit Dosanjh and director Honey Trehan’s much awaited film Punjab ‘95 has finally made it to cinema world after almost three years in a certification battle. Recently released on Zee5 under the new name Satluj, the film marks the end of one of the most heated censorship controversies in recent Indian cinema.
Based on Jaswant Singh Khalra’s life, the film stars Diljit Dosanjh as the lead actor and Kanwaljeet Singh, Arjun Rampal, Suvinder Vicky, Geetika Vidya Ohlyan and others as the supporting actors. The title of the film has changed but the actor and director insist that the film is still the same as it was originally made.
Diljit said in an Instagram Live session with Honey Trehan that audiences are watching the same version that was screened privately years ago.
"Our film has finally appeared on Zee5. Unfortunately, we couldn’t keep the original title Punjab ′95 for some reasons. So it is now called Satluj. But there are absolutely no cuts in the film. The version I watched in theatres two years ago is exactly the same one I watched at home last week. If even a single cut had been made, I would not have promoted the film," he said.
Honey Trehan repeated that, and also said that Jaswant Singh Khalra’s wife Paramjit Kaur Khalra had also confirmed that the released version is identical to the one she had watched.
"Paramjit aunty also shared a post about the film and said this is the same version she had watched earlier. Only the title has changed," Trehan said, adding that every dialogue and scene he had earlier refused to alter remains intact in the final release.
Diljit admitted that even though the film has been in doubt for years now it is surreal.
"I still can't believe our film has finally been released. I was asking Honey yesterday if it would really come out today. We’ve waited for this moment for so long that even the audience may find it hard to believe," he said.
Trehan thanked Diljit for working with the film on the long journey, saying the film couldn’t have been released without his support.
Kashyap has also promoted the film with an Instagram post encouraging people to watch it. While the title has changed, the movie is in one piece, Kashyap said.
A Certification Battle That Lasted Years
Punjab ‘95’s road to release has been anything but smooth. The film was submitted to the Central Board of Film Certification (CBFC) in December 2022 and soon became controversial when Honey Trehan claimed that the certification board had asked for 127 cuts before clearing it.
The film director was vehemently against the suggestions in interviews last year and felt that if they were accepted, the movie would be drastically altered.
He questioned the rationale for the removal of references to Punjab, the Punjab Police, former Prime Minister Indira Gandhi and even to Jaswant Singh Khalra's name. Trehan also raised objections to the visuals of the Indian flag, Gurbani and the locations related to the events depicted in the film.
At that time, he said he would rather remove his name from the project than release a heavily altered version.
However, the controversy also disrupted the film’s international journey. The Toronto International Film Festival (TIFF) premiere date in 2023 was postponed and the overseas theatrical release in early 2025 was also not achieved.
Trehan later suggested that political developments ultimately helped to ease the situation, especially after the controversy surrounding Diljit Dosanjh’s Sardaar Ji 3. His view is that at least the government’s support for artistic freedom was instrumental in getting the film to finally go forward.
Now Satluj has been officially launched on Zee5 after so many years of uncertainty. And while audiences may be surprised to see a different title for the same content, the filmmakers insist the content is still the same as it was originally planned, ending one of Bollywood’s longest-running certification disputes.
