2021 · Film
Kaagaz
Satish Kaushik's satirical drama, inspired by farmer Lal Bihari, in which Pankaj Tripathi plays a man declared dead in government records who fights to prove he is alive.
Reviewed by Movie Mandala, Sun, 18 Oct, 2026
Where to watch
IndiaAs of 18 October 2026, Kaagaz is streaming in India on ZEE5 with a subscription.
- Checked Sun, 18 Oct, 2026Open ↗
The story
Bharat Lal is an ordinary man from a village in Uttar Pradesh, living with his wife Rukmani. One day he discovers that, according to government records, he is dead: his own relatives had him declared deceased on paper. Clerks and officials shrug him off, so with the help of a lawyer, Sadhoram Kewat, he sets out to convince the system, one office, one politician and one court at a time, that he still exists.
Spoiler-free: only the set-up.
Who it suits
A gentle satire for families and anyone who has battled government paperwork; it is under two hours long and carries a U/A 13+ rating on ZEE5. The humour is mild and the story is about bureaucracy and greed rather than violence, so it works for older children with their parents.
Genres:ComedyDramaTrue stories
Curation to help you choose, not a review.
Background
Kaagaz, which means 'paper', is based on the life of Lal Bihari, a farmer from Amilo Mubarakpur in Uttar Pradesh who was declared dead in official records and spent 19 years fighting to be recognised as alive. Lal Bihari himself appears briefly, as a man cycling beside Bharat Lal. Satish Kaushik wrote and directed it, and Salman Khan Films produced it with Kaushik's company.
The film skipped cinemas and premiered on ZEE5 on 7 January 2021. It was Kaushik's last film as director before his death on 9 March 2023. The Times of India and NDTV each gave it three stars out of five, and News18 gave it two and a half. At the 2021 Filmfare OTT Awards it received three nominations: Best Web Original Film, Best Actor for Pankaj Tripathi and Best Supporting Actor for Kaushik. A spiritual sequel, Kaagaz 2, with a different story and cast, was released on 1 March 2024.
The facts
- Language
- Hindi
- Hindi
- Hindi original
- Genre
- Satirical comedy-drama, Biographical
- Runtime
- 109 min
- Certificate
- U/A 13+ (ZEE5 rating)
- Director
- Satish Kaushik
- Cast
- Pankaj Tripathi, Monal Gajjar, Satish Kaushik, Mita Vashisht, Amar Upadhyay
Questions people ask
- Where can I watch Kaagaz in India?
- As of 18 October 2026, Kaagaz is streaming in India on ZEE5 with a subscription.
- Is Kaagaz in Hindi?
- Yes. Kaagaz is a Hindi-language film.
- Is Kaagaz suitable for children?
- Kaagaz has a CBFC U/A 13+ (ZEE5 rating) certificate.
- How long is Kaagaz?
- Kaagaz runs for 1 hour 49 minutes (109 minutes).