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One of Urdu literature’s greatest heroes is set to make his silver screen debut as Ishtiaq Ahmed’s iconic Inspector Jamshed series of spy novels is getting adapted into a movie.

The film, which has been shot in the UAE, is slated for release some time this year and is packed with Pakistani star power.

Omair Rana will be playing titular role of the film’s protagonist and will be joined by child stars Ahmed Harkous, Ravel Imran and Aline Harkous playing the inspector’s kids and trusty sidekicks.

Ahad Raza Mir has been cast as Behzaad, though his exact role in the film remains a mystery. Ahad’s father, Asif Raza Mir, is both a co-producer on the project and playing the role of Inspector Jamshed’s friend Khan Rehman. Faran Tahir will be playing the role of Zafar Burki.

In a promo video, Ahad and Tahir said the project was very special to them because they “grew up” reading books from the series. Rana said the undertaking was like “the whole world coming together” owing to its diverse cast and crew, which includes people from over 13 nationalities.

Executive producer Adnan Butt said the project had the potential to be a “benchmark for global kids’ fiction” and their ultimate success with it would be to inspire “the next Ishtiaq Ahmed”. Butt had earlier worked on a web series based on the novels.

For the uninitiated, the Inspector Jamshed series are some of the most popular works from prolific Urdu novel writer Ishtiaq Ahmed. The books follow the adventures of a crime-fighting super spy and his three kids as they foil high stakes plots.

The writer, who passed away in 2015, began writing in 1973 and wrote almost 800 books in his lifetime. His other popular work includes the Inspector Kamran Mirza and Shoki Brothers series.