Veteran actress Farida Jalal says she is hale and hearty—crushing a death hoax report. “I am hale and hearty,” Farida said in a statement, following the rumours that went viral on social networking sites.

The 67-year-old actress wonders why people spread such rumours.

“I don’t know from where these baseless rumours are coming from. Initially I laughed, but... My phones have been constantly ringing and everybody is asking the same question. It’s a bit irritating, I wonder why people spread such rumours,” she added.

Jalal, who was born in 1949, has acted in over two-hundred Bollywood films. Known primarily for her work in Hindi cinema, she has also worked in Telugu, Tamil and English-language films. The actress, who began her career as a child artist, is widely remembered for her award-winning roles in Paras, Henna and Dilwale Dulhania Le Jayenge.