Amitabh Bachchan hints at receiving COVID-19 vaccine, talks about 'free BO results'

Megastar Amitabh Bachchan on Sunday hinted that he will receive the first dose of the coronavirus vaccine as soon as he recovers from his eye surgery. Earlier this month, the 78-year-old actor had opened up about his first eye surgery and said that the recovery is "slow and difficult". 

Last week, Bachchan underwent successful surgery for his other eye. Taking to his blog, the screen icon voiced concerns around rising COVID-19 cases and the Box Office performance of his upcoming film Chehre. 

"There is now the fear of another strain, getting free Box Office results and that is unnerving... The vaccination has become mandatory and soon there shall be the conditioning for yours truly to be one such in queue. Well as soon as the work in progress eyes get settled... till then it's a wild world ain't it," Bachchan wrote.

Recently, cinema veterans Sharmila Tagore, Dharmendra, Hema Malini, Mohanlal, Nagarjuna, Paresh Rawal, Satish Shah, Jeetendra, Kamal Haasan, Anupam Kher, Rakesh Roshan, and Johnny Lever received their first dose of the COVID-19 vaccine.  

Meanwhile, the Baghban actor had been hospitalised for COVID-19 treatment in July last year, along with other members of his family, son Abhishek, daughter-in-law Aishwarya Rai Bachchan and granddaughter Aaradhya. They all recovered from the infection.

On the work front, Amitabh Bachchan has a couple of films lined up for the year. He will next be seen in Chehre opposite Emraan Hashmi. The film is slated to hit the screen on April 30. Another of his film, Jhund, is gearing up for release on June 18. Among the other projects in his kitty, include Brahmastra, which has been in the making for the past two years, and Mayday, where he plays a lawyer and a reported film alongside Rashmika Mandanna. 

On Friday, Bachchan was honoured with the FIAF Award for his dedication and contribution to the preservation of the world's film heritage by the International Federation of Film Archives (FIAF). He thanked his fans, whom he calls his "extended family", for their congratulatory messages.

During the virtual event, Hollywood filmmakers Martin Scorsese and Christopher Nolan hailed Bachchan as a "celebrated actor" and "living legend". Bachchan is the first Indian film personality to be honoured with the award.

(With PTI inputs)