Paatal Lok is based on Tarun Tejpal's 2010 novel The Story of My Assassins. The series stars Jaideep Ahlawat, Gul Panag, Neeraj Kabi, Swastika Mukherjee, Ishwak Singh, Abhishek Banerjee, Niharika Lyra Dutt, and Richa Chaturvedi. The show is inspired by traditional concepts of Svarga, Dharti and Paatal (heaven, earth and hell) as metaphors for the different classes of India and the four estates, with Paatal being served as the prime phase of the storyline.