Satluj Imdb Rating Disappears Sanjay Gupta Calls Platform Bogus

Days after being taken down from ZEE5, Honey Trehan’s Satluj has suffered another setback. IMDb has removed the film’s user rating from its portal. On Tuesday, Satluj was listed as the highest-rated Indian film on IMDb, with a 9.5 rating. However, by Wednesday, the rating had disappeared from the platform.

Filmmaker Sanjay Gupta took to X after noticing the development and questioned the credibility of IMDb’s ratings. He wrote, “Rated 9.5 till yesterday. Gone today. Not that I ever trusted or believed in IMDB ratings. But this proves how bogus they are.”

Reacting to the development, Satluj co-writer Niren Bhatt said he was equally unaware of what led to the ratings being removed. “We didn’t know when the film was going to be released, and we didn’t even know when it was taken down. And now this IMDb rating… we don’t know who had a problem with it, what the problem was, or why. There was simply no communication,” he told Hindustan Times.

Bhatt had earlier criticised the lack of transparency surrounding the film’s prolonged release struggle. Speaking to Variety India, he said, “I feel someone in the establishment has a massive problem with it, but the real issue is the complete lack of communication. For years, it has just been pure stonewalling. There is pin drop silence from the CBFC. They will not tell us what their problem is, which parts offend them or who is making these calls. Even now, ZEE5 issues a statement about ‘current developments’ but cannot explain what those developments actually are. If there is a problem, let us have a dialogue. But how can you have a dialogue when they just silently remove your work?”

Responding to claims that the film could be weaponised by “anti-India forces” or international elements, Bhatt dismissed the argument. “That argument simply does not hold. If The Kashmir Files can exist, if The Kerala Story can exist, why can they exist without being labeled tools for international forces? Why is our film the chosen one that will suddenly be misused by extreme elements? You cannot jump to far-fetched, paranoid conclusions just to suppress a straightforward biography. It makes absolutely no sense.”

He also confirmed that the makers now plan to challenge the decision in court. “Our next step is clear: we will appeal in court. This film has been wrongly stopped, and whoever has an issue must legally spell it out so we can counter it. The judiciary has rescued cinema before. It happened with Udta Punjab when the CBFC demanded 94 cuts. The makers went to court, fought it out and the film released with just one cut. We are highly hopeful that history will repeat itself and Satluj will start streaming again very soon.”

Satluj premiered on ZEE5 on July 3 after struggling to get a CBFC certificate for nearly four years. However, the film was removed from the streaming platform just two days later. Reports claimed that ZEE5 was directed to take down the film, citing “security concerns” and obligations under the Information Technology Rules, 2021. According to PTI, the makers had applied for CBFC certification in 2022 under the film’s original title, Punjab 95. However, the certification process stalled after they declined to implement the 127 cuts reportedly suggested by the board.

A government official told PTI, “They kept sitting on the suggested cuts and eventually released the movie quietly on OTT with a new title. OTT does not come under the CBFC’s jurisdiction. When the matter came to the government’s notice, ZEE was asked to take the film down. The direction was given due to security concerns. The OTT platform was asked to follow the obligations under intermediary guidelines. If they want to release the film in theatres and on OTT, they should follow the laid-down norms.”

Previously titled Punjab 95, Satluj is based on the life of Jaswant Singh Khalra, a banker who became one of Punjab’s leading human rights activists who alleged that the state machinery was conducting extrajuducual killings. The film chronicles the events leading up to his abduction in 1995. In 2005, four Punjab Police personnel were convicted of Khalra’s abduction and murder and sentenced to life imprisonment.

The film stars Diljit Dosanjh in the lead role and is produced by Honey Trehan, Abhishek Chaubey and Ronnie Screwvala. It also features Arjun Rampal, Kanwaljit Singh, Suvinder Vicky and Geetika Vidya Ohlyan in pivotal roles.