Salman Khan's new film - a war drama inspired by the June 2020 India-China military clash in Ladakh's Galwan - was rechristened Monday as ties between Delhi and Beijing continue to mend. Earlier titled 'Battle of Galwan', it has now been called 'Maatrubhumi', announced with an Instagram poster of a bloodied-but-defiant Khan.
The movie has not, however, been without controversy.
Even before its release, the project drew criticism from some quarters in China.
After the teaser for the film - under its original name - circulated online, several on Chinese social media platform Weibo accused it of misrepresenting the events surrounding the clash.
Chinese state media also criticised the film, suggesting it promotes Indian nationalism and distorts facts about the 2020 conflict. Government sources, however, dismissed the criticism.
The clash took place over June 15-16 in eastern Ladakh and was the most significant border showdown between India and China in four decades, even if no firearms were used.
The violence, which included brutal hand-at-hand combat in sub-zero temperatures, resulted in casualties on both sides. Twenty Indian soldiers were killed in the line of duty.
An unspecified number of Chinese soldier also died.
Tension had been building in the region from early May after Beijing objected to Delhi constructing the strategically important, all-weather Darbuk-Shyok-Daulat Beg Oldie Road that runs parallel to the Line of Actual Control, the de facto border in the ongoing boundary dispute.
Beijing viewed this as altering the status quo and escalated its military presence in the area, forcing Delhi to respond accordingly to underscore its right to develop its territory.
All of this is shown in the movie, in which Salman Khan plays Colonel Santosh Babu, the Commanding Officer of the 16 Bihar Regiment, who led Indian troops in the clash.
It all started on June 15 after Indian troops moved to dismantle a Chinese tent in the Galwan valley region - around 15,000 feet above the sea level. China had agreed to remove the tent after talks de-escalation talks nine days prior for the purpose of creating a buffer zone.
But a fight broke out after the Chinese targeted Colonel Babu.
Reinforcements were called in by both sides and the clash escalated. By the time it ended - after six hours - 20 Indian soldiers had been killed. Report said 40 Chinese troops died.
What followed was months of military and diplomatic tension that brought the two countries to the brink of another war; Beijing claimed India violations while Delhi said China had tried to encroach on its territory and unilaterally alter the status quo.
Military-level talks began but the fallout included months of diplomatic and economic tension between India and China, which included India banning over 200 Chinese mobile phone apps.
Four years later a patrolling arrangement along the LAC was agreed and India-China ties began to thaw.
