A few years ago Dev was flying to Thailand for the shoot of a film and something happened mid-air that still gives him the chills. His flight got caught in turbulence, the “worst” he has encountered till date, and Dev didn’t know what to do. It was past midnight. Seconds turned into minutes and minutes stretched to eternity as the plane shuddered and lurched. This went on for 20 minutes, and finally the flight emerged out of turbulence safely, thanks to an alert and skilful pilot. 

Dev still cannot forget that night and the flight. Call it serendipity or coincidence, Dev is now set to play a pilot of a plane hit by turbulence in his second home production called Cockpit. The film, which hits the floors end-May or mid-June, will be directed by his Chander Pahar director Kamaleswar Mukherjee. “A flight from Bombay to Calcutta takes off in bad weather and gets caught in air turbulence and then the film goes on to show how the pilot lands the flight even as its two engines stop functioning,” says the Chaamp star. 

Dev and Kamaleswar have been planning this film since last December. “I had shot for Chander Pahar and Amazon Obhijaan previously with Kamalda in South Africa and Amazon respectively. We share a great understanding and we wanted to do something different and authentic. I love to take on challenges. And this is a very difficult film to execute,” added Dev. 

The research work for Cockpit has started in full swing. For the last couple of months, Dev has been travelling with a notebook and pen, jotting down every little detail on a flight. “We have started the research work on the lives of pilots, how long they fly in a day, what happens during flights, how people react when a flight lands in an air pocket,” says Dev, whose character goes through a range of emotions even as he steers the flight. “It is his anniversary, he has to go back home and his wife is waiting for him.”