“They write to tell me ‘I hope you die with this Covid’."
Iconic actor Amitabh Bachchan has issued a threat to those who have wished for him to die from Coronavirus.
He had previously spoken about the stigma suffered by Covid-19 patients.
Amitabh and his son Abhishek Bachchan have been in a Mumbai hospital for over two weeks after contracting Covid-19.
Meanwhile, Aishwarya Rai Bachchan and his granddaughter Aaradhya were discharged on July 27, 2020, after also testing positive.
They are the highest-profile family to contract the virus in India.
Amitabh and his son remain in an isolation ward, with the megastar keeping his legion of fans updated on social media.
The 77-year-old has been writing a blog, thanking his fans and medical staff at the hospital.
However, on July 28, 2020, he revealed that some people had sent him vile messages, saying that he should die from the virus.
He revealed: “They write to tell me ‘I hope you die with this Covid’. Either I shall die or I shall live. If I die you won’t get to write your diatribe anymore, by weathering your remark on a celebrity name… pity.”
Amitabh responded to the trolls with hate, threatening to “exterminate” them.
In his blog, he addressed the trolls:
“Hey Mr Anonymous, you do not even write your father’s name because you do not know who fathered you.”
He added: “The reason for your writing to be noticed was because you took a swipe at Amitabh Bachchan… that shall no longer exist!
“If by God’s grace I live and survive you shall have to be ‘weathering’ the ‘swipe’ storm, not just from me, but on a very conservative level, from 90+ million followers.”
Amitabh Bachchan then said that he would get his millions of fans to turn on them, writing:
“That extended family shall in the flash of an eye become ‘extermination family’.”
Amitabh’s words have been seen as surprising especially when considering that other Bollywood stars who have been trolled have simply ignored them.
The actor also revealed that he was able to hug his granddaughter before she left the hospital. He recounted his emotional reaction to the news that she and her actress mother could go home.
He wrote: “The tears flow out … the little one embraces and tells me not to cry … ‘you’ll be home soon’ she assures … I must believe her.”
The actor also touched on the mental trauma and stigma suffered by Covid-19 patients.
India is the world’s third most infected nation with almost 1.5 million cases. Mumbai accounts for seven per cent of all cases in the country.
Most lockdown restrictions have been lifted to restart the economy. However, numerous states have had to reintroduce shutdowns amid local increases.
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