Calamity strikes Devdas sets

Komal Nahta

A storm fan which was being manned by five people changed the lives of at least two on the sets of Sanjay Leela Bhansali's Devdas.

Calamity struck on December 9, throwing the shooting of the film completely out of gear. While one person's face was totally disfigured, the other received such a severe blow to his head that he is said to have lost his mental equilibrium.

The accident happened when two of the five people manning the storm fan went elsewhere on the sets. Unaware of this shift, Bhansali ordered the shot to be canned. The electrician, also oblivious of this change, switched the storm fan on.

The three remaining attendants tried their level best to control the huge fan, but failed. The long blades of the fan came out loose, cutting through the face of one and hitting the head of another attendant.

Shooting, of course, came to a halt. The two injured unit members were rushed to a hospital immediately.

The set, constructed by Nitin Desai, has been the cynosure of all eyes ever since it was constructed at Bombay's Film City. It has also been said to be the costliest set ever for any Hindi film.