Diljit Dosanjh on the emotional impact of ‘Satluj’: ‘It took me a week to move on after this film’
After a long adoption journey, ‘Satluj’, which was earlier titled ‘Punjab ’95’, has finally made its way to OTT. Inspired by the life of human rights activist Jaswant Singh Khalra, the film marks another collaboration between Diljit Dosanjh and director Honey Trehan. Reflecting on this experience, the actor spoke about the deep trust he shares with the director and the impact Trehan has had on his career.Heaping praise on the director, Diljit shared with Variety India, “Working with Honey Trehan has been a wonderful experience. The first thing I will remember about him is his energy. I have not met many people who have such tremendous enthusiasm and enthusiasm, especially from the first to the last shot of the day. His energy never went away even after packing his bags.”He also mentioned that it was Honey Trehan who encouraged him to audition for Udta Punjab, his first Hindi film.“Working with Honey sir has been inspiring, and my relationship with him has grown over the years. In fact, when I started my career in Hindi cinema with Udta Punjab, it was Honey Trehan who called me and offered me an audition. I look up to him as an elder brother, and he was among the first few who encouraged me and showed faith in my talent, so I owe him a lot. I have learned a lot from him, be it on the sets of this film or in general during the film.” years.
“Diljit explained that working with Trehan was never a routine film shoot. Instead, every day he spent on set became an opportunity to hone his craft.“He has shaped me in so many ways, which I still hold very dear to myself, even if I don’t say it directly to him. One of the many things that makes working with him so exciting and special is that we don’t feel like we’re working on a movie. Every day on set feels like a learning experience.”
“It is as if we entered a workshop or an acting class, and every scene contains a lesson for you.”
Jaswant Singh Khalra’s portrayal took an emotional toll
While the collaboration proved to be creatively satisfying, Diljit admitted that taking on the role of Jaswant Singh Khalra was among the toughest challenges of his acting career.“It’s honestly one of the hardest films I’ve ever made in my career. It took everything away from us emotionally and physically. There were long days, difficult conditions and intense scenes.
But ultimately, it was the nature of the subject matter that really stuck with me. “I think this is probably the first film in my career that requires me to recover after shooting.”Contrary to his usual routine of jumping into another project, the actor revealed that he needed time to separate himself from this role.“Once I finish a film, I move quickly because I don’t enjoy taking a break. However, after this film, I had to take a week off to process everything I went through while shooting Jaswant Singh Khalra.
The scenes and emotions and character aspects persisted, so it took time for me to move away from that.”
Searching for the role changed his perspective
Diljit also shared that he spent a lot of time reading documents and testimonies related to Jaswant Singh Khalra’s life before starting the shoot. He described the search process as emotionally exhausting.“There are so many documents, real accounts and testimonies that it was very difficult to read.
Most of these real-life incidents were heart-wrenching. I couldn’t process it all. There were times during the research that I broke down because the reality was so strong and heavy.”He added that the film depicts only part of Khalra’s journey and hoped that the audience would understand the extraordinary courage behind his story.“What we showed in the film is a small part of what actually happened because you cannot recreate everything that happened.
The reality is more painful than we imagined. I carried that with me all the time. It is not the story of one person, but of unprecedented courage in unimaginable circumstances. Jaswant Singh Khalra was aware of all the dangers. He knew he and his family were in danger, yet he stuck to his beliefs and the truth.
“This kind of courage is very rare, and you can’t handle it with anything but responsibility.”Describing ‘Satluj’ as more than just another film, Diljit concluded, “Apart from being a film, this was an emotional experience for me. It was a very educational and humbling experience. This story has left an indelible impact on me and my outlook on life. I hope people walk out of the theater feeling emotional and inspired.”‘Satluj’ is currently streaming on Zee5.