‘I’m Sad Because I Have a Very Different Role in It’: Sunita Rajwar Heartbroken As Acclaimed Film ‘Santosh’, UK’s Oscar Entry, Faces Censorship Hurdles and Remains Unreleased in India

Actor Sunita Rajwar says it is disheartening that her film Santosh will not release in India despite receiving acclaim globally. The Sandhya Suri-directed movie, Britain’s official entry to the Oscars in 2025, could not release after facing hurdles in its censor certification. The actor, who played one of the two women officers in the movie, said her role in the movie is one of her best works. ‘Santosh’ Shortlisted for Oscars 2025: Everything You Need To Know About the Crime Drama Starring Shahana Goswami.

“I’m sad because I have a very different role in it, it’s a good role, it’s a big role. Every artist wants everyone to see their best work. We expect that if people see our work, then you will be offered either that role of that calibre or a different kind of role. We all want the audience should at least get to see it (the film) and see what we’ve done in it. It is banned. They (makers) are trying, but they (censor board) are asking for so much edit that it’s not possible,” Rajwar, who will next be seen in the Prime Video series, Panchayat 4, told PTI in an interview. ‘Santosh’: Shahana Goswami’s Oscar-Nominated Film to Hit Theatres on January 10, 2025.

Santosh, an international co-production set in rural north India, follows the story of Shahana Goswami as a driven young Hindu widow who inherits her husband’s job as a police constable thanks to a government scheme.

She finds herself caught up in institutional corruption even as she warms to working with rough-edged veteran detective Inspector Sharma (Rajwar) on a brutal murder case involving a teenage girl from the lower caste Dalit community.