Sikhs in the city of Surrey in British Columbia are flocking to a local movie theatre to watch the Punjabi film "Sadda Haq" that ran into controversy back home.

The film, written by Kuljinder Sidhu, is on the Khalistan movement in India in the 1990s. Though yet to hit the screens in India, it has been released in Australia, Britain, the US and Canada.

In Surrey, the film is being screened at the Cineplex Odeon Strawberry Hills Cinemas and it is running to packed houses, the Vancouver Desi news site reported.

"It's been extremely well attended, ` the report quoted Cineplex spokesman Mike Langdon as saying.

`We've had a number of our evening shows sell out. `

One of the viewers, Indira Prahst, chair of the sociology department at Langara College, described it as `very courageous film`.

`This subject resonates very strongly with our diaspora Sikhs, ` she said.

Prahst felt that the movie captured real life stories and accurately depicted history without propaganda.

Another viewer, Indy Panchi, found the the film very moving and like nothing he has seen before.

`Innocent families got involved in something that they shouldn't have got involved in and the state police was out of control, ` he was quoted as saying.

`Within that a lot of innocent youngsters, students, families got wiped out as well. `

Surrey is home to a huge expatriate Sikh population.