The Godfather won a best picture Oscar

Bachchan's son, Abhishek, is to play the son in Kutumb (Family) which will go into production early next year.

Producer AG Nadiadwala said that though Kutumb is based on the original film: "It will be an Indian version with songs, action, comedy."

The Godfather is based on Mario Puzo's best-selling novel charting the turf wars of Italian mafia families in the US.

It is a chilling portrait of the Corleone family's rise and near fall and the passage of power from patriarch to son.

Kutumb is to be directed by the prolific and highly successful director Mahesh Manjrekar.

Amitabh Bachchan started acting more than 30 years ago, and in the 1970s he was the biggest film star in India.

His persona as the "angry young man" carried him through dozens of films and brought him a passionate following from millions of fans.

Bachchan was a hit as host of Who Wants To Be A Millionaire?

When he was seriously injured whilst filming the movie Coolie in 1983, thousands held a vigil outside the hospital where he was being cared for. National news issued regular updates on his recovery.

By the end of the 1980s his career had peaked and he turned his attention towards politics.

Supporting Rajiv Gandhi, he won a parliamentary seat but eventually returned to the cinema.

He then became presenter of the hugely popular Indian version of Who Want to be a Millionaire.

Bachchan won a BBC News Online users poll for star of the millennium.