Diljit Dosanjh Stands Against CBFC Over Censorship Of Punjab'95, Says 'If You Release Film With Cuts...'

Diljit Dosanjh entertained the Indians with his hit tracks during his over two-month-long Dil-Luminati concert in the country. While the singer faced a few hiccups, he was quick to bounce back. He also voiced his opinions when the state government banned 'vulgar' words used in his lyrics. After facing all this, the singer and actor was looking forward to the release of his movie Punjab'95 - spelt Panjab'95 - but is now awaiting the approval of the Central Board of Film Certification (CBFC). For the unversed, the movie has been with CBFC for over a year now after they suggested 120 cuts to the film.

Now, during Instagram Live, the Punjabi singer shared an update on the release of the movie and stated that he won't support the film if released with cuts.

Diljit Dosanjh is firm on his decision to release Punjab'95 without cuts

In his live session, Diljit Dosanjh said, "I hope the film gets released in India soon. I will support only that film that will be released fully without any cuts. If you release the film without cuts I will come, otherwise with cuts it doesn’t matter. I hope some solution will come out and it will release in Punjab.” He further explained that if the movie is released with cuts, then it will defeat the purpose of the film's message.

Punjab'95 director Honey Trehan supported the singer by sharing the clip on his Instagram Stories and saying that he would pull off his name if there were any cuts to the movie. "Chaddiyaan kallan. Panjab’95 will not have my name as a director too if there will be any cut. I don’t support the unreasonable and politically coloured demands of cbfc. I stand by my film and by my team. I will never let down their faith in me. Justice will prevail soon and I hope the world sees the uncut film soon. Immense respect for Jaswant Singh Khalra ji’s martyrdom," he wrote.

Why Punjab'95 is being held by CBFC?

The movie is based on the life of prominent human rights activist Jaswant Singh Kalra. He advocated for the rights of Sikhs and dedicated his life to exposing human rights violations. He was the director of a bank in the city of Amritsar in Punjab during the militancy period in Punjab. Following Operation Blue Star, the assassination of Indira Gandhi, and the 1984 Anti-Sikh Riots, the police were empowered to detain suspects for any reason, ostensibly as suspected terrorists. The police were accused of killing unarmed suspects in staged shootouts and burning thousands of dead bodies to cover up the murders. Khalra was investigating four major cases at one time and continued to collect evidence and witnesses.