Satish Kaushik trains his camera on the 'living dead'

Filmmaker Satish Kaushik's next project is a film about the "living dead" of Uttar Pradesh.

The renowned actor-director-producer is working on Mritak, a film about Lal Bihari, a man from Azamgarh, who was declared dead in the official records.

"The film based on the life of Lal Bihari will go on the floor in September and we plan to release it by December," Kaushik told PTI.

Lal Bihari, was declared dead in official records in 1976, allegedly by his relatives in connivance with the government staff, over a property dispute.

After an 18-year-long struggle the officials admitted the mistake and Azamgarh district administration declared Lal Bihari alive again.

When Kaushik came to know about the incident in 2002, he decided to make a film on the subject and is currently working on the script.

"The film was delayed due to my other projects. But I loved the subject and I had to study a lot of books and get my facts right before starting with the script. The script writing is in the last phase," said the filmmaker.

"Declaring any person dead in official records for the sake of property or money is a burning issue, which appealed to me instantly. This could be understood only by viewing it from the viewpoint of the sufferer," he added.

The director of hits like Tere Naam and Hamara Dil Apke Pass Hai said that the issue is a global one.

"It is necessary that the film reaches not only in India but to other countries as well, because the issue of living deads in a global issue," he said.

On being asked about the star cast, Kaushik said that it was yet to be finalised.

"I want to make the film with mature and talented actors. Script writing which is the most difficult part of the film is about to complete. The casting details will be finalised by April 15," he added.

"As a director I am working on a number of scripts, besides making a movie Mayanagri based on a novel. This year my effort is to deliver different types of movies," he said.