Honey Trehan breaks silence on Satluj controversy: 'I genuinely don't know who objected'

Four years after Punjab 95 was stopped in its tracks over objections from the censor board Honey Trehan was finally breathing easy on Saturday morning when we got on a call with him His film now streaming on ZEE5 as Satluj had arrived without a single cutFor the filmmaker it marks the end of a battle that often seemed impossible to winIn his first interview since the films release Trehan told midday that there were moments when even he wasnt convinced the film would eventually see the light of day Even till yesterday afternoon I wasnt sure if the film would come out he says with a laugh Weve reached this point so many times before that I had stopped allowing myself to believe it I kept telling myself Let it go let it go Then suddenly it was just thereThe release he says belongs as much to the family of human rights activist Jaswant Singh Khalra as it does to the makers I spoke to them immediately They are very very happy It was important because we didnt get the title Punjab 95 Naturally people assumed the film must have been released with cuts Paramjit aunty herself clarified that this is the same film Hundreds of people who had watched the earlier version are now saying Satluj is exactly the same filmHoney Trehan PicsSpecial ArrangementFor Trehan that validation mattered more than anything else Im getting messages from IPS officers in Punjab asking The film is without cuts right They are excited to finally watch it That means a lotThe director admits he was initially worried that the fouryear delay would burden the film with impossible expectations I actually felt the opposite happened These three years became three years of publicity Punjab 95 had become much bigger than the film itself My only anxiety before release was whether I could live up to what people had built in their minds But the response has been overwhelming Every reaction has become memorableTrehan credits producer Ronnie Screwvala Diljit Dosanjh and ZEE5 for refusing to compromise The way Ronnie sir and Diljit stood by me and stood by the film I cant thank them enough And what courage ZEE has shown Hats off to them They simply dropped the trailer posters and the film together There was no release date no countdown nothing It was just mdash streaming now Ive never seen anything like thatThroughout the films uncertain journey Dosanjh remained firmly behind the project says Trehan Recalling how the actor came on board he says their relationship dates back to Udta Punjab Even before I told him I wanted to make a film on Jaswant Singh Khalra he immediately said Theres only one story from Punjab worth making if it isnt about 1984 I showed him my research book He looked at Mr Khalras photograph picked up the book placed it on his forehead and simply said Waheguru ji tell me when and where to come Youll find me thereThat commitment Trehan says never wavered There were days when he reported at six in the morning and I couldnt take his first shot until four in the evening because schedules had gone haywire I kept apologising Every single time he would tell me Paaji no problem Whatever youre doing youre doing for the film Im here to support the filmThe filmmaker also recounts how Dosanjh recently waited nearly an hour for an Instagram Live session promoting the film despite repeated technical glitches He waited for almost 50 minutes We couldnt connect because of technical issues Finally someone got us connected It wasnt about publicity Somewhere both of us felt we would connect Thats the kind of person he isEven today Trehan says he doesnt know who exactly objected to Punjab 95 If somebody asks me who had a problem with the film I genuinely dont know I dont have a face I dont have a name Everything came through third persons or lawyersHe reveals that communication from the censor board effectively stopped earlier this year forcing the makers to find another route There came a point when there was simply no communication anymore After everything wed gone through there was nothing left to discuss Thats when ZEE stepped in and made this release possibleYet despite the years of uncertainty he refuses to hold grudges Ive never been bitter Sometimes you feel hurt emotionally because youre not getting answers But I also remind myself that Im talking about one film The people running the country have much bigger responsibilities Sometimes there must have been helplessness I respect the people and the positions they holdHe points out that every legal body and community organisation that watched the film responded positively The SGPC watched the film The Akal Takht committee watched the film Everywhere I went the response was overwhelming Today the film is available across 196 countries on ZEE5 and all Im receiving is love So where exactly was the problemTrehan also responded to Diljit Dosanjhs recent assertion that he is not political but an artiste Without commenting on the actors statement the director says art inevitably exists alongside politics Art can be different from the politics of the time youre living in Otherwise your art cannot be truthful Everything today becomes politicalHe insists Satluj was never designed to make a political argument Were only talking about human rights Were not commenting on the politics of that period Were talking about what happens when extraordinary powers are placed in the hands of a few people Thats a human issue not a political oneTrehan believes that is why audiences across generations are responding to the filmSomeone messaged me saying this film doesnt reopen wounds it heals them That stayed with me People feel somebody has finally told their story Thats probably the greatest compliment Ive receivedAt the time of going to press lsquoSatlujrsquo had been made unavailable on ZEE5 in IndiaStatement by Zee5 ldquoThe response to lsquoSatlujrsquo since its release has been truly overwhelming We are deeply grateful to every viewer who chose to subscribe watch and champion the film Your love and support have meant a great deal to us and to everyone who brought this story to life At Zee5 we stand firmly by lsquoSatlujrsquo and the creative vision behind it We believe powerful storytelling has the ability to inspire endure and leave a lasting impact We remain committed to championing authentic and meaningful narratives In light of the current developments lsquoSatlujrsquo will be unavailable in India until further notice We remain committed to exploring every appropriate avenue through due process to bring the film back to our audiences at the earliest opportunity Our commitment to creators and to stories told with conviction artistic integrity and purpose remains unwaveringrdquo