Filmmaker Sandip Ray on Tuesday said that he has completed research for his next upcoming movie Hatyapuri of the Feluda series and shooting will begin by the end of May.
However, he kept people guessing who would play the iconic sleuth created by his father Satyajit Ray, saying "someone who has a combination of athleticism and sharpness in his look" will essay the role.
"I and my team have done detailed research in Puri and shooting is likely to begin in May end. I want to complete the film by December. So, that people can view it on Christmas," Ray told PTI.
The year-long birth centenary celebrations of Satyajit Ray will end on May 2.
"I had long wished to bring Hatyapuri, which was first published in children's magazine Sandesh, on the big screen," he said.
Ray had earlier cast actor Sabyasachi Chakraborty as Feluda in movies such as Bombaiyer Bombete (2003), Kailashey Kelenkari (2007) and Abir Chatterjee in Badshahi Angti (2014), among the seven Feluda films he has directed so far.
In Hatyapuri, Pradosh Chandra Mitter aka Feluda visits Puri for vacation but gets embroiled in investigating a murder that takes place in the coastal town during his stay.
Ray had merged two Feluda stories- Samaddarer Chabi and Golokdham Rahasyo to make his last Feluda movie Double Feluda in 2016, the 50th anniversary of the birth of the fictional character.