Bollywood star Amitabh Bachchan and his son have been admitted to hospital with coronavirus.

The 77-year-old actor confirmed he had tested positive for COVID-19 on Twitter where he has 43 million followers.

One of India’s most prominent stars, Bachchan said he had been “shifted to hospital” after contracting the virus.

“Family and staff undergone tests, results awaited,” he added.

“All that have been in close proximity to me in the last 10 days are requested to please get themselves tested.”

His son Abhishek, also an actor, said he too had contracted the virus.

He said both he and his father have “mild symptoms”, adding: “I request all to stay calm and not panic.”

Bachchan senior is considered Bollywood royalty and with more than 180 films under his belt has previously been named among the highest paid actors in the world on Forbes’ rich list.

In 2015, Bachchan attended the official unveiling of a statue of Mahatma Gandhi in Parliament Square with then-prime minister David Cameron.

India is struggling to deal with the coronavirus pandemic, passing Russia on Monday to record the third highest number of coronavirus cases in the world after the US and Brazil.

On Saturday, the country reported a new daily high of 27,114 cases, bringing the total to 820,916, while 22,123 people have died with the virus.

Following the spike, several states brought back lockdowns, including the country’s most populous state of Uttar Pradesh, home to more than 230 million people.

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