MUMBAI: Veteran filmmaker Manmohan Sabir is back after a brief hybernation with a bilingual film on the theme of national integration.

The film, titled Jeevan Yatra in Hindi and Journey of Life in English, has been written, produced and directed by Sabir himself. Says the 82-year-old director, “The film is about a Hindu boy who falls in love with a blind Muslim girl, but is not allowed to marry her on grounds of religion. Newcomers Itishree and Pardesi play the leads. Tinnu Anand, Chandrashekhar, Raza Murad and Sheeba also feature in the film.”

Sabir’s film has been cleared by the censors without any cuts, with an ‘A’ certificate. The two hour long film will be released in May, and Sabir’s friend Rishi Raj will distribute the film in Delhi-UP. The rest of the rights, including the India video, satellite and audio rights are still being finalised, says Sabir.

In a career that has spanned nearly half a century, Manmohan Sabir has made 16 films with K Abbas (including Saat Hindustani and Do Bhoond Paani) and was world rights controller along with filmmaker Gulshan Rai for films like Anhonee and Pardesi. In the late 1990s, he made Share Bazar, starring Jackie Shroff, Ravi Kissen and others, followed by Waqt Ka Badshah, which featuring Dharmendra and Raj Babbar.