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Bollywood Stars Amitabh, Aishwarya Rai Bachchan Test Positive for COVID 


FILE - Indian film actor Abhishek Bachchan, his wife Aishwarya Rai and their daughter Aaradhya in a March 9, 2019 photograph taken at the wedding of Akash Ambani, the son of Reliance Industries chairman Mukesh Ambani, in Mumbai, India.
FILE - Indian film actor Abhishek Bachchan, his wife Aishwarya Rai and their daughter Aaradhya in a March 9, 2019 photograph taken at the wedding of Akash Ambani, the son of Reliance Industries chairman Mukesh Ambani, in Mumbai, India.

Bollywood star and former Miss World Aishwarya Rai Bachchan and her eight-year-old daughter tested positive for the coronavirus, state officials confirmed Sunday.

The news follows an announcement Saturday that her father-in-law Amitabh Bachchan and her husband Abhishek tested positive and were admitted to the hospital.

Though Amitabh Bachchan, 77, was admitted to the hospital, he is reportedly stable with only mild symptoms, Rajesh Tope, minister of public health for the state of Maharashtra, said in a tweet Sunday.

His wife Jaya has tested negative for the virus, Reuters reported.

FILE - Bollywood actor Amitabh Bachchan waving to fans in Mumbai, India, Dec. 13, 2018.
FILE - Bollywood actor Amitabh Bachchan waving to fans in Mumbai, India, Dec. 13, 2018.

Legendary actor Bachchan, who has starred in over 200 of Indian films since the early 1970s, tweeted on Saturday that he had tested positive for the virus.

"Family and staff undergone tests , results awaited ... All that have been in close proximity to me in the last 10 days are requested to please get themselves tested !” he wrote.

His son Abhishek tweeted a similar message shortly afterward.

Amitabh Bachchan has been a prominent figure in India’s campaign to stop the spread of the novel coronavirus, filming ads about wearing masks and appealing to citizens to stay home.

Still, despite enforcing one of the most strict lockdowns in the world earlier this year, India’s case numbers of COVID-19 are rising.

Over 27,000 new cases have been reported in the past 24 hours, with over 500 new deaths.

With nearly 850,000 confirmed cases, India has the third highest rate of COVID-19 infections in the world, after Brazil and the United States.

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