Mani Ratnam's untitled film starring Abhishek Bachchan and Aishwarya Rai Bachchan will finally take off after on October 29 after Diwali.

The first major schedule with AbhiAsh was supposed to start on October 12 a day after Amitabh Bachchan's birthday. But the Big B fell ill the morning before the shooting, leaving his son and bahu with no choice but to cancel the shoot.

No hurry

Says a source close to the project, "Mani made it very clear that there was no rush for Abhishek and Aishwarya to return. Having gone through a personal bereavement recently, he knows family always comes first. There was no pressure on the pair to show up in Kochi for the shooting."

Abhishek was very clear about returning to work only when his dad completely recovered. Abhishek and Aishwarya return to the shooting after the festival of lights. There are no Diwali celebrations in the Bachchan household this year because Big B's mom Teji Bachchan passed away last December.

Packed up

Meanwhile, the unit has packed up in Kochi. Ravi Kissen who plays Abhishek's elder brother says, "We couldn't do any shooting because all my scenes are with Abhishek."

Incidentally, the Big B's schedules would need considerable adjustment when he gets back to work. The project most immediately affected is Leena Yadav's Teen Patti. The Big B was shooting for it when he fell ill.

Says director Leena, "Mr Bachchan had taken the day off for his birthday when he fell ill. Very honestly, his health is far more important than any film schedule. We'll resume shooting only when he has recuperated fully."