The cure is Lisa's birthright, says director Dilip Mehta

Lisa Ray has spirit and will combat the rare multiple myeloma cancer she has been diagnosed with, says her director Dilip Mehta who cast the actress as a diplomat's wife in his debut 'Cooking With Stella'.

'It came as a jolt to all her friends and fans. Lisa has a huge fan following in Canada. There's a pall of gloom here. But I know she'll fight it out,' Dilip told IANS from Toronto.

Multiple myeloma, a rare cancer of the plasma cells, is said to be incurable.

'It's a rare cancer. But it's combatable. And Lisa will do it. She has spirit. The cure is Lisa's birthright. No one can deprive her of it,' he added.

What Dilip admires most is the manner in which the 37-year-old Canadian born actress has confronted her illness.

'Lisa looked the illness in the face and has taken it on. She has shared her crisis with the world and is now ready to battle it out. Nothing can keep it down. Lisa is an effervescent person. She carries happiness and hope wherever she goes,' said Dilip, brother of Canada-based Indian filmmaker Deepa Mehta.

Lately Lisa has been travelling a lot.

'She shot in Delhi with us. Then she was in Kerala travelling with her father, not because she wanted to travel the destinations of her liking in a final kind of way but because she wanted to see the world. She's a free spirit. She recently lost her mother after an illness. And she needed to rejuvenate her spirit.'

Dilip says Lisa never allowed her illness to dampen her spirit while shooting.

'While we shot 'Cooking With Stella' there was just that hint that her body was acting up. But you know how it is. You get a cough and you hope it won't be anything worse and it will go away. Lisa shot the film without letting her health problem show up.'

'I've no doubt she'll fight out this crisis in her life. She has gained so much positivity and goodwill all across the world.'