Salman Khan’s Battle of Galwan draws flak from China, govt cites 'cinematic freedom'

Cinema is an artistic expression and India does not restrict it, government sources said on Tuesday as Salman Khan's "Battle of Galwan", based on the 2020 clash between Indian and Chinese troops in the Galwan Valley, found itself in the news after its 1.12 minute teaser.

The big budget drama has — expectedly — drawn criticism from China's Global Times which claimed the movie to be a cinematic exaggeration and said it distorted facts.

The film, directed by Apoorva Lakhia, has Salman playing the role of Bikkumalla Santosh Babu, who laid down his life along with 19 other soldiers of the 16 Bihar Regiment in the 2020 battle while defending Indian territory. He was posthumously given India's second-highest wartime gallantry award, the Maha Vir Chakra.

A teaser of the film was released on Salman's 60th birthday on Saturday. It shows the actor's Army officer and group of Indian soldiers ready to charge at the PLA army members running towards them with the song "Mera Bharat Desh Mahaan Hai" playing in the backdrop.

The teaser, which begins with a voice over by Salman's character saying, "Soldiers, remember, if you get hurt, treat it like a medal and if you see death, salute it", has already got over 60 million views across different social media platforms.

"India has a tradition of cinematic expression. A movie titled 'Haqeeqat' was made in 1964 and the theme was the India-China war of 1962. Another film '120 Bahadur' was made recently on the legendary battle of Rezang La. Cinemas are an artistic expression and India does not restrict it," a government source said.

Several Indian media outlets reported on the teaser and the criticism it drew from the Chinese media.

The Global Times termed the movie propaganda and quoted a "Chinese expert" and several Weibo (Chinese social media) accounts to find fault with different aspects of the short teaser.

"A Chinese expert said on Monday that Bollywood films at most provide an entertainment-driven, emotionally charged portrayal, but no amount of cinematic exaggeration can rewrite the history or shake the PLA's determination to defend China's sovereign territory," the newspaper claimed.

"The film has also drawn other controversies online, with users pointing to issues such as the appearance and costumes of extras, actors' hairstyles that do not match their military roles or the extreme cold implied in the storyline, and, most importantly, a portrayal of events that does not align with the facts," it said.

Produced by Salman Khan and his mother Salma Khan, "Battle of Galwan" releases on April 17.

The military standoff in eastern Ladakh began in May 2020. Clashes at the Galwan Valley in June that year resulted in a severe strain in ties between India and China. Twenty Indian Army personnel laid down their lives in the Galwan Valley clashes on June 15, 2020.

In February 2021, China officially acknowledged that five Chinese military officers and soldiers were killed in the clashes though it is widely believed that the death toll on the Chinese side was much higher.

Meanwhile, a 2025 report by the Free Speech Collective speaks of a “free speech crisis” in India, citing intensified film censorship, book bans and crackdowns that create a hostile climate for artistic expression.

With PTI inputs