Entertainment
oi-Swastika Sruti
One can say that Diljit Dosanj’s career is at its peak as he is coming with back to back movies. But here’s something that got a catch – his latest film Sutluj has become a major talking point due to its long delays , changes and sudden exit from OTT platform soon after its release.
Diljit Dosanjh stars in ‘Sutluj’, formerly Punjab 95, a film about activist Jaswant Singh Khalra who disappeared in 1995 after exposing Punjab’s alleged illegal cremations, resulting in life sentences for former police officers.
Well, one must know that the film is based on a real human rights activist – Jaswant Singh Khalra, whose work exposed serious questions about disappearances during Punjab’s troubled years.
Who Was Jaswant Singh Khalra?
As already mentioned that Jaswant Singh Khalra is a human rights activist from Punjab, he became known for raising his voice against the alleged illegal detention, killing and secret cremation of many people during the military rule in the 1980s and 1990s. He did spend most of his years collecting evidence and speaking to witnesses that put him in the limelight of national attention.
What Was He Trying to Prove?
Well went through several disturbing incidents linked to the violence in Punjab, studied cases involving custodial killings, death of villagers in a human shield case, the cremation of unidentified bodies, and the killing of police officers who refused to support certain counter terror actions.
His efforts were driven by the bigger unrest in Punjab after events like Operation Blue Star, the assassination of Indira Gandhi, and the anti-Sikh violence of 1984.
What Happened to Khalra?
He went missing !
In the year 1995, Khalra went missing from his home in Amritsar. Several reports say that he was taken away while washing his car outside his house, or abducted by the police and later killed. His wife, Paramjit Kaur Khalra, kept asking for justice and pushed authorities to act. Later, the CBI found signs that Khalra had been kept at a police station in Tarn Taran.
Legal Action In The Case
In the case of Khalra’s kidnapping and murder, the CBI recommended action against several police officials. But the case went on and on and justice takes a long time.
In 2007, the Punjab and Haryana High Court sentenced four former police officers in the case to life imprisonment. This brought some legal closure, but the case still remains one of the darkest chapters in Punjab’s history.
The film stars Diljit Dosanjh along with Arjun Rampal, Suvinder Vicky, Geetika Vidya Ohlyan, and Kanwaljit Singh. It is directed by Honey Trehan and produced by Ronnie Screwvala’s RSVP in collaboration with MacGuffin Pictures. The movie also went through several title changes. It was first called Ghallughara, then Punjab 95, and finally released as Satluj.
Watch Trailer :
