Those who have missed Ritesh Batra’s moving love stories on screen are in for good news. mid-day has learnt that six years after his last offering Photograph (2019), the director is ready to call action on his next. Sources tell us that Batra is exploring a tender love story, something that has become his signature in the last 12 years, and will take it on floors in September.

“Ritesh spent a considerable time writing this big romance. The film is in final prep mode,” says an insider. After giving us rooted Indian romantic dramas in The Lunchbox (2013) and Photograph, and international stories in Our Souls at Night (2017) and The Sense Of An Ending (2017), this time around, the director has envisioned a cross-cultural love story with a mix of Indian and international cast.

“It’s a mature romance between an Indian man and a foreigner. It’s the kind of sensitive drama about love and loss that Ritesh has come to be known for,” a source shares. The cast has been locked.

The project will see him reuniting with Guneet Monga Kapoor, who was one of the producers of The Lunchbox. She serves as one of the producers on the international co-production.