A review in Variety examines "Satluj," an Indian activist drama directed by Honey Trehan starring Punjabi pop star Diljit Dosanjh, whose troubled release history mirrors the film's own themes of state suppression. The film was pulled from Toronto International Film Festival's lineup in 2023 without explanation under its former title "Punjab '95," and after finally clearing Indian censors this July, it was removed from streaming within days for both domestic and international audiences.

The film dramatises the true story of Jaswant Singh Khalra, a bank manager turned activist who uncovered evidence of extrajudicial killings and mass disappearances by Punjab police in the 1990s, investigating after the murder of an elderly relative's husband. Dosanjh, fresh off a North American tour and a "Tonight Show" appearance, delivers what the reviewer calls a measured, almost saintly performance, with the film framing the true-crime narrative through a lens of Sikh spiritual duty rather than pure politics.