Amitabh Bachchan has denied reports that he has tested negative for Covid-19.
Drawing attention to one clip in particular, the Bollywood legend retweeted a Times Now video on Thursday, July 23, writing: "This news is incorrect, irresponsible, fake and an incorrigible lie!"
The banner of the Twitter video reads: "Amitabh Bachchan tests -ve for Covid." In the clip, filmmaker Ashoke Pandit discusses Bachchan's health with a news anchor.
"We are hoping to get an official word that Amitabh Bachchan is now fully recovered," the Times Now newsreader says.
"It's good news, [not only for us] in the industry but for the entire country at large, all his fans, all those who prayed for him and his fast recovery," Pandit told the anchor. "We were all sure he would get well very soon."
"I am sure the family now will test negative and they will all get well very soon," he continued.
The anchor then reflected on the spirit of Bachchan, who she says "didn't seem to let Covid get the upper hand, even while he was hospitalised". She paid particular attention to the poems he shared for fans on Twitter.
"[Yes,] Bachchan has always been very positive," Pandit replies in the clip. "He has been a fighter, he has been encouraging people to do good things, he has been promoting injections ... he comes out for social causes."
Multiple news reports suggested that Bachchan, 77, and his son, Abhishek Bachchan, 41, tested negative for the coronavirus before the actor made his Twitter statement. Abhishek has not yet commented on his social media.
The father and son were admitted to hospital in India on Saturday, July 11. At the time they were described by authorities as "stable with mild symptoms".
The following day, Abhishek's wife Aishwarya Rai Bachchan, 46, and their daughter, Aaradhya, 8, both tested positive for Covid-19. At first, they were described as asymptomatic, however, they were admitted to hospital on Friday, July 17, after complaining of "breathlessness". At the time, a hospital representative assured fans "they are fine".
All four family members are thought to remain at Nanavati Hospital in Mumbai.
The four actors are among the most high-profile people in India to have tested positive for Covid-19. At the time of writing, the country of 1.38 billion people had reported more than 29,800 deaths and more than 1.2 million cases of the coronavirus.
COMPANY%20PROFILE
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How much do leading UAE’s UK curriculum schools charge for Year 6?
- Nord Anglia International School (Dubai) – Dh85,032
- Kings School Al Barsha (Dubai) – Dh71,905
- Brighton College Abu Dhabi - Dh68,560
- Jumeirah English Speaking School (Dubai) – Dh59,728
- Gems Wellington International School – Dubai Branch – Dh58,488
- The British School Al Khubairat (Abu Dhabi) - Dh54,170
- Dubai English Speaking School – Dh51,269
*Annual tuition fees covering the 2024/2025 academic year
Conflict, drought, famine
Estimates of the number of deaths caused by the famine range from 400,000 to 1 million, according to a document prepared for the UK House of Lords in 2024.
It has been claimed that the policies of the Ethiopian government, which took control after deposing Emperor Haile Selassie in a military-led revolution in 1974, contributed to the scale of the famine.
Dr Miriam Bradley, senior lecturer in humanitarian studies at the University of Manchester, has argued that, by the early 1980s, “several government policies combined to cause, rather than prevent, a famine which lasted from 1983 to 1985. Mengistu’s government imposed Stalinist-model agricultural policies involving forced collectivisation and villagisation [relocation of communities into planned villages].
The West became aware of the catastrophe through a series of BBC News reports by journalist Michael Buerk in October 1984 describing a “biblical famine” and containing graphic images of thousands of people, including children, facing starvation.
Band Aid
Bob Geldof, singer with the Irish rock group The Boomtown Rats, formed Band Aid in response to the horrific images shown in the news broadcasts.
With Midge Ure of the band Ultravox, he wrote the hit charity single Do They Know it’s Christmas in December 1984, featuring a string of high-profile musicians.
Following the single’s success, the idea to stage a rock concert evolved.
Live Aid was a series of simultaneous concerts that took place at Wembley Stadium in London, John F Kennedy Stadium in Philadelphia, the US, and at various other venues across the world.
The combined event was broadcast to an estimated worldwide audience of 1.5 billion.
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More coverage from the Future Forum
The specs: 2018 Jaguar E-Pace First Edition
Price, base / as tested: Dh186,480 / Dh252,735
Engine: 2.0-litre four-cylinder
Power: 246hp @ 5,500rpm
Torque: 365Nm @ 1,200rpm
Transmission: Nine-speed automatic
Fuel consumption, combined: 7.7L / 100km
if you go
The flights
Etihad and Emirates fly direct to Kolkata from Dh1,504 and Dh1,450 return including taxes, respectively. The flight takes four hours 30 minutes outbound and 5 hours 30 minute returning.
The trains
Numerous trains link Kolkata and Murshidabad but the daily early morning Hazarduari Express (3’ 52”) is the fastest and most convenient; this service also stops in Plassey. The return train departs Murshidabad late afternoon. Though just about feasible as a day trip, staying overnight is recommended.
The hotels
Mursidabad’s hotels are less than modest but Berhampore, 11km south, offers more accommodation and facilities (and the Hazarduari Express also pauses here). Try Hotel The Fame, with an array of rooms from doubles at Rs1,596/Dh90 to a ‘grand presidential suite’ at Rs7,854/Dh443.
Teams
Punjabi Legends Owners: Inzamam-ul-Haq and Intizar-ul-Haq; Key player: Misbah-ul-Haq
Pakhtoons Owners: Habib Khan and Tajuddin Khan; Key player: Shahid Afridi
Maratha Arabians Owners: Sohail Khan, Ali Tumbi, Parvez Khan; Key player: Virender Sehwag
Bangla Tigers Owners: Shirajuddin Alam, Yasin Choudhary, Neelesh Bhatnager, Anis and Rizwan Sajan; Key player: TBC
Colombo Lions Owners: Sri Lanka Cricket; Key player: TBC
Kerala Kings Owners: Hussain Adam Ali and Shafi Ul Mulk; Key player: Eoin Morgan
Venue Sharjah Cricket Stadium
Format 10 overs per side, matches last for 90 minutes
Timeline October 25: Around 120 players to be entered into a draft, to be held in Dubai; December 21: Matches start; December 24: Finals
Specs
Engine: 2-litre
Transmission: Eight-speed automatic
Power: 255hp
Torque: 273Nm
Price: Dh240,000
