The film, "Satluj", tells the story of Jaswant Singh Khalra, a rights activist allegedly tortured and killed by police in 1995 after having investigated thousands of cases of disappearances and presumed extrajudicial killings during a brutal government crackdown in the state.Viewers showed up for a screening in the temple courtyard in Gurdaspur district even as officials have accused director Honey Trehan of distorting history, and after the film was taken down from online platforms within 48 hours of its release.For some in the crowd, it was an act of defiance, seeking to preserve the memory of what many regard as one of the darkest chapters in Punjab's history."It has shown us all that we didn't know, and which our government wants to keep hidden," Shamsher Singh, 32, told AFP after his second time watching "Satluj".While authorities have not officially announced any actions against the film or its distribution, a rumoured ban has sparked anger.
Activist Jaswant Singh Khalrawas allegedly tortured and killed in 1995 after having investigated thousands of cases of disappearances in India's Punjab © Narinder NANU / AFP
"The government bans anything that is good," said Singh.But the alleged restrictions have also fuelled an interest in watching the film, with Sikh groups hosting screenings in temple courtyards, community halls and village squares across Punjab."We've been organising at least five such screenings each evening," said Inderpal Singh Bains, a farmer leader who is behind the Gurdaspur temple event."Such is the craze that we have a long waitlist, with many villages still waiting" for a screening, he said.Disappeared without a tracePunjab state in the 1980s and early 1990s was a violent battleground between Indian authorities and armed backers of "Khalistan", a conservative separatist movement that sought an independent homeland for the Sikh community.Thousands of civilians, police and militants were killed as security forces battled separatists, who enforced strict religious codes and targeted political opponents, according to rights groups.
