Madhur copes with sad and comedy part of life

Though Madhur Bhandarkar is shooting his career"s first comedy, it seems things are far from funny in his real life at the moment. Just when the comedy Dil To Bachcha Hai Jee began shooting this month after monsoonal delays, the director"s mother was hospitalized. Madhur had to shuttle between Hinduja hospital and his set in Andheri in the suburbs of Mumbai, and try to see the funny side of life on camera while his mother lay critically ill.

As if coping with an emotional crisis was not enough, Madhur"s leading man Ajay Devgn has to leave for a promotional tour of Once Upon A Time In Mumbai on Saturday leaving Madhur"s comedy bereft of its main character. The director"s problems don"t end there. On Thursday, the precious day of shooting had to be cancelled because the set had to be re-designed.

Sounding utterly distressed Madhur says, “Ajay has to leave for Delhi and Kolkata for his promotion. And shooting got cancelled on Thursday. So I"ve just one day to finish his work for this schedule. Luckily Ajay is a quick actor. He doesn"t waste time on the sets". Even otherwise shooting funny scenes with one"s mom in the hospital is not easy.

Says Madhur, “Luckily Dil To Bachcha Hai Jee is not a slapstick comedy. The mood on the sets is subtle. If everyone had to constantly scream shout and whoop it up, I don"t know how I"d have coped". The one good thing that has come out of the gloomy week of illness, cancellations, and other glitches is the director"s bonding with Ajay Devgn.

Madhur can"t stop raving about his hero. “Ajay is so hassle-free and chilled out. He is effortless on the sets. I want to work immediately again with him."