Jude Anthany Joseph, fresh from the success of 2018, is set to make a period film on the missing ship, MV Kairali. Scripted by Jude and Josy Joseph, the investigative thriller is based on the true story of Kerala Shipping Corporation’s cargo ship MV Kairali that disappeared in 1979 with a crew of 49 and 20,000 tonnes of iron ore on board while sailing from Margao, India to Rostock, Germany, via Djibouti.

Earlier, in 2017, cinematographer Jomon T John had announced his directorial debut based on the same subject with Nivin Pauly as the lead. The actor's Pauly Jr Pictures and Real Life Works were supposed to produce the film, which had National Award winner Sidhartha Siva as the scriptwriter. However, the project never took off. 

It remains to be seen if Jude's film will also have Nivin as the lead. The two, who earlier collaborated in Om Shanthi Oshaana, have already announced a reunion. Moreover, Jude has also signed a film with Lyca Productions.

The director is currently in the US promoting 2018, which is India's official entry to the Oscars this year. The survival thriller, based on the Kerala floods, is the highest-grossing Malayalam-language film of all time. More recently, it was screened at the ongoing International Film Festival of India, Goa.