"Hun Ni Rukni Film. Khalra Saab Di Avaaz Nu Koi Ni Dabaa Sakda" ("Now the film will not be stopped. No one can silence Khalra Sahib's voice"), actor Diljit Dosanjh wrote on X after his film Satluj was removed from the OTT platform ZEE5.
His statement reflects the film's current reality. Although Satluj is no longer available on its official streaming platform, it continues to circulate widely online through piracy. Copies of the film remain easily accessible via Google searches and, more significantly, on Telegram, where numerous channels continue to distribute it.
While removing a film from an authorised OTT platform is relatively straightforward, preventing its circulation after release is far more challenging. Once a copy enters Telegram's decentralised distribution network, it spreads through interconnected channels, bots, backup groups and external links, making it difficult for publishers or regulators to control its further distribution.
An India Today investigation identified at least 37 public Telegram channels and groups involved in sharing or facilitating access to pirated copies of Satluj. The investigation used Telegram's API to identify channels carrying the film's name and related keywords, followed by manual verification to eliminate inactive links, spam and unrelated groups. Only active channels distributing pirated copies or directing users to external download sources were included.
Together, these Telegram channels had a combined subscriber base of more than 12.6 lakh users.
The investigation found that nearly every piracy channel relied on one or more Telegram bots, each serving a different purpose. Some bots directly delivered pirated copies, while others redirected users, regenerated download links or connected them to additional piracy networks, helping the ecosystem remain active even if individual channels were removed.
One of the identified channels alone had over 10 lakh subscribers and used a dedicated content-delivery bot to distribute download links to both subscribers and users searching for the film.
Typically, users were required to initiate interaction with a bot by entering the "/start" command. Many bots also required users to join one or more Telegram channels before providing download links in multiple video resolutions. Since these channels often contained little or no publicly visible content, they left minimal evidence for Telegram's automated moderation systems to detect.
India Today found that at least 33 of the 37 identified channels used content-delivery bots. Other channels relied on promotional bots that redirected users to piracy networks, helping operators expand their reach. Another category of bot functioned as a dynamic search tool, allowing users to simply search for "Satluj" and instantly receive the pirated file without browsing through multiple channels.
These findings closely align with a recent academic study conducted by researchers from Louisiana State University and the University of Texas at Arlington.
After examining 1,057 Telegram piracy channels and more than 209,000 posts, the researchers concluded that Telegram's piracy ecosystem is intentionally structured to resist takedowns by relying on interconnected bots, backup channels and multi-stage redirection rather than a single distribution point.
The study highlighted the central role played by Telegram bots in making piracy networks difficult to detect. Unlike public channels, bots require users to actively initiate interaction before revealing pirated content. They can provide download links, redirect users to additional channels or bots, and require mandatory channel subscriptions before granting access. In many cases, bots also automatically deleted download messages and disabled message forwarding, reducing the digital footprint available for automated moderation systems.
Researchers further observed that Telegram's piracy infrastructure is specifically designed to survive enforcement efforts. Instead of depending on one channel, operators distribute copyrighted content through multiple interconnected bots, intermediary channels and backup groups while hosting files on external cloud storage platforms and streaming websites. This layered structure ensures that even if one channel or download link is removed, users can continue accessing the same content through alternative routes.
According to the study, this ecosystem has caused billions of dollars in losses to the global entertainment industry.
Researchers found that more than 19,000 copyrighted films and television programmes circulated across the analysed Telegram piracy network, generating over 4.85 billion views. Using conservative estimates of actual consumption, they calculated a minimum financial loss of approximately USD 17.49 billion through lost subscriptions, rentals and legitimate purchases. Content produced in countries including the United States, Japan, South Korea, the United Kingdom and India accounted for some of the largest estimated losses, highlighting the global economic impact of Telegram-based piracy.
The India Today investigation suggests that removing a film from an official streaming platform does not necessarily eliminate its online availability. Once copyrighted content enters Telegram's decentralised piracy ecosystem, interconnected bots, backup channels and external hosting services can continue distributing it long after its official release has been withdrawn.
Satluj, previously titled Punjab '95, is inspired by the life of human rights activist Jaswant Singh Khalra, who exposed the alleged illegal cremation of thousands of unidentified bodies during Punjab's militancy in the 1980s and 1990s. The film has remained at the centre of controversy for years, with its removal from ZEE5 marking another chapter in its release journey.
In an Instagram video posted on Monday, Diljit Dosanjh said he was pleased that many people had already downloaded the film and that it had become "part of the conversation." The investigation indicates that his remark reflects the reality of today's digital piracy landscape, where a film removed from an authorised streaming platform can continue to circulate widely through Telegram's extensive network of channels and bots.
