Lionsgate Play Removes Santosh From Streaming List Last Minute - Here's Why

Filmmaker Sandhya Suri's Santosh, a police procedural thriller that ran into trouble with the CBFC over suggested cuts and missed its theatrical release in India in January, has also been removed from the streaming list by Lionsgate Play. The movie, featuring Shahana Goswami in the role of a police constable embroiled in the investigation of a young girl’s murder, was supposed to begin streaming on October 17 but has been dropped by the streamer last minute. The post on Lionsgate Play's social media handles announcing the OTT release of Santosh has also been taken down.

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The Indo-British production had its world premiere at Cannes Films Festival in 2024 under the Un Certain Regard category and earned critical praise for its unflinching portrayal of caste, gender and power dynamics. It was later chosen as the United Kingdom’s official entry for the Best International Feature Film category at the 2025 Oscars. Santosh was initially slated for a release in Indian theatres on January 10. However, the plan was stalled following a standoff with the Central Board of Film Certification (CBFC). Reports suggested that disagreements between the filmmakers and the CBFC over proposed edits delayed the release.

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At the time, a CBFC member said that it was “a classic case of gross disagreement”, with the producers insisting on no cuts while the board sought certain modifications. About the OTT release of Santosh being paused, Suri told Deadline, "The objections I had to cuts for the theatrical release remain my objections for a streaming release. The streamers don’t need, by law, to have censorship status to show films. But perhaps this is about an environment in which streamers take on certain objections of their own accord for a harmonious universe.”

It is said that CBFC has raised objections to some scenes in Santosh depicting police brutality in India and had previously urged makers to edit them out. Despite the film not finding an India release, Suri affirmed that audiences are watching it on pirated sites due to the “amount of feedback everyone is getting". “My wish is for the film to be distributed legitimately and uncut in India,” Suri said.