NEW DELHI: Megastar Amitabh Bachchan was on Tuesday named this year's Dada Saheb Phalke winner, Indian cinema's highest honour for an artiste.
Information and Broadcasting Minister Prakash Javadekar confirmed the news in a Twitter post.
"The legend Amitabh Bachchan who entertained and inspired for 2 generations has been selected unanimously for #DadaSahabPhalke award. The entire country and international community is happy. My heartiest Congratulations to him.@narendramodi @SrBachchan," Javadekar tweeted.
The 76-year-old screen icon, who rose to stardom with his 'Angry Young Man' persona capturing the anger of the young generation in the 1970s with films such as "Zanjeer", "Deewar" and "Sholay", continues to be a force to reckon with in Indian cinema.
In a career spanning five decades, Bachchan has given memorable performances film after film and is a four-time National Film Award winner.