By Zarak Khan | 2026-01-14

India has rejected objections raised by China over an upcoming Bollywood film depicting the deadly 2020 Galwan Valley border clashes. New Delhi maintains that Beijing has no authority to police artistic expression or dictate the portrayal of the deadliest military conflict between the two countries in decades.

The diplomatic friction follows the December 27 trailer release of "Battle of Galwan." Starring Salman Khan, the film is an adaptation of the book "India's Most Fearless 3." It centers on the actions of Col. Bikkumalla Santosh Babu, the Indian commanding officer who was posthumously awarded the Maha Vir Chakra after being killed in the confrontation.

The film is scheduled for worldwide release on April 17.

It "stokes antagonistic sentiment" and "does not align with the facts," the state-owned Chinese news site Global Times said on December 30.

It accused the film of advancing a "distorted" and one-sided Indian narrative of the June 2020 clashes along the Line of Actual Control (LAC), a de facto boundary separating the two rivals.

The criticism reflects Beijing's intolerance of narratives that challenge its version of events, say Indian officials and analysts.

Border clashes of 2020

The fighting took place in the Galwan Valley, a remote area in India's Ladakh region along the LAC, in June 2020, when Indian and Chinese troops engaged in violent hand-to-hand combat.

India confirmed the deaths of 20 soldiers, while China has acknowledged only four fatalities among People's Liberation Army troops.

It was the deadliest border clash between the two countries since 1975. In the aftermath, both sides reinforced forward positions and entered months of military and diplomatic negotiations focused on disengagement and de-escalation. While some progress occurred, relations remain strained, trust is low and several friction points along the border remain unresolved.

By centering on Babu's leadership and final moments, the narrative shifts from a broad account of the border conflict to a personal story. The film adds a cinematic dimension to the battle.

Babu posthumously received the Maha Vir Chakra, India's second-highest wartime honor, for his actions during the confrontation.

India rejects Chinese criticism

Indian filmmakers and industry figures have dismissed Chinese criticism.

Actor and producer Rahul Mitra described it as unsurprising and told NDTV: "Films are made with proper research because that is the foundation of any good script."

Unlike China, whose government closely supervises show business, the Indian government plays no role in Bollywood movies, their storylines or their release dates, and Bollywood operates mainly on entertainment and commercial logic, Sumit Ahlawat, a New Delhi-based analyst, wrote in Eurasian Times.

Hyper-nationalistic films are not unique to India, he said, pointing to similar trends in both Hollywood and the Chinese film industry.

Leaders of Indian film unions were blunter in their assessment.

"If a filmmaker or production house decides to give [a] depiction of confrontation of India and China, there is nothing wrong with it," said Ashoke Pandit, chief adviser to the Federation of Western India Cine Employees, a Mumbai-based film industry workers' union.

The Sino-Indian border dispute, involving overlapping territorial claims, dates back to the 1950s.

Indian cinema has previously reworked sensitive episodes from the conflict through films such as "Haqeeqat" and "121," which depict the 1962 Sino-Indian War in Ladakh.

"India is a country with freedom of expression," NDTV quoted government sources as saying. "Government has no role to play in this film."