'Kurukshetra' actor Salil Ankola tests positive for COVID-19; gets hospitalized
Salil Ankola is the latest Bollywood celebrity to have contracted the contagious coronavirus. The cricketer-turned-actor took to social media from the hospital bed to inform about this, and asked for "all your blessings to come through with this." This unfortunate development happened on February 28, his birthday eve. Soon, comments started flowing in, with Suniel Shetty being the first one to react.
Unforgettable birthday, it's scary to go through this: Ankola
Ankola shared a picture of himself on Instagram, and captioned the image as, "Bringing in my birthday tomorrow with COVID19 catching up with me. Unforgettable birthday. It's scary to go through this but will be needing all your blessings to come through with this. Will be back soon full throttle (sic)." The post received over 2K likes and close to 500 comments.
Will be back soon full throttle, he writes
Doctors said the actor has COVID-induced pneumonia currently
Sharing his experience, Ankola, who turned 53 yesterday, said, "I was breathless when I was wheeled in. Immediately, I was put on a ventilator. I was admitted on February 28 at 5AM. I developed cough and fever. Now they say I've COVID-induced pneumonia. It's been a scary time." He tested positive when he was getting a routine test before travelling for shoot to Jaipur.
'Speedy recovery': Wishes poured in from friends and fans
Soon after Ankola posted his picture, fans and friends started writing in, wishing him a speedy recovery. Actor Suniel Shetty was among the first ones to wish him, saying, "Get well soon Salil ... godbless (sic)." Renuka Shahane wrote, "Take care @salilankola I'm sure you'll get well soon (sic)." Others who wished included Chirag Patil, Sudhanshu Pandey, Aditi Govitrikar among many others.
He acted in serials including 'Kora Kaagaz', 'Karam Apnaa Apna'
Ankola is a former fast bowler, who is also the chairman of the senior selection committee of the Mumbai Cricket Association. As an actor, he made his debut with the Sanjay Dutt-starrer Kurukshetra (2000). He also made appearances in Pitaah and Zayed Khan's Chura Liyaa Hai Tumne. Further, he acted in television serials including Kora Kaagaz, Rishtey, Karam Apnaa Apnaa and more.