A photograph of veteran Bengali actor Soumitra Chatterjee from the hospital, was leaked on social media on Tuesday, compelling his daughter to pen a note on Facebook requesting respect and privacy.
“Amidst this time of huge anxiety over the health of my Covid-afflicted father, Soumitra Chatterjee, we are extremely upset, sad and heartbroken to find unauthorised pictures of him from the ICU and his medical bulletin being shared widely on social media,” she wrote.
“Please give him the privacy and respect that he so richly deserves. Kindly do not share such images/information and do not heed or indulge in rumour mongering. This is the urgent appeal of my family. Your prayers and good wishes are always very welcome. Thank you.”
Till Wednesday, the Padma Bhushan awardee was said to be critical but stable, as reported by NDTV.
“Stable. Slept well. All parameters normal. Sodium high only. But critical,” the hospital authorities said.
“Mr Chatterjee is still in a confused state which is progressive in nature with COVID-related encephalopathy and metabolic encephalopathy. He continues to be restless, arousable and has mild agitation and involuntary limb movements but no focal or generalised seizure event occurred,” they said.
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The 85-year-old actor, who started his cinematic career with Satyajit Ray‘s Apur Sansar, was admitted to the Belle Vue Nursing Home in the city on October 6 after he was tested positive for Covid-19. According to the bulletin released by the hospital, he has been suffering several co-morbidities including prostate cancer, possibly in remission, for which he underwent treatment some years ago. He is also suffering from chronic obstructive pulmonary disorder (COPD).
He had been admitted to hospital last August with severe pneumonia.
He had to be admitted to the ITU after his condition worsened. A team of 15 doctors is said to be attending to his case.
For now, he is put on ventilator and has also been given a course of Remdesivir- an antiviral medication that is being tested for treating Coronavirus.