Why this Bollywood icon turned down Queen Elizabeth II's Buckingham Palace invitation

Queen Elizabeth II, Britain's longest reigning monarch, invited Bollywood's biggest cultural icon Amitabh Bachchan to the Buckingham Palace in London, but sadly, the actor couldn't accept it.

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India and the UK have a rich history and the cultural event will enrich the relationship. The Queen will host the UK-India 2017 Year of Culture that will see the presence of high profile guests from both the countries. And to celebrate the event, the Queen and Prince Philip, Duke Of Edinburgh, extended a special invitation to Big B to attend the event.

However, Big B's packed schedule has forced him to turn down the invite. Big B is currently busy with the preparations of Vijay Krishna Acharya's Thugs of Hindostan, also starring Aamir Khan, and Gaurang Doshi's Aankhen 2. He will also attend the trailer launch of Ram Gopal Varma's Sarkar 3 in March. Apart from that, he will prepare for movies that include Ayan Mukerji's Dragon, a Kabir Khan's production and Marathi film Sairat director Nagraj Manjule's upcoming project.

"Yes, Mr Bachchan has been extended a rare invitation by Queen Elizabeth and Buckingham Palace to grace the UK-India Cultural Year reception. Unfortunately, however, he will be unable to attend due to prior commitments," Big B's publicist told Mid-Day.

The Queen will start the event by hosting a reception at Buckingham Palace this February end. "We are very happy that 2017 is the year of Indian culture in the UK. It is also the year India marks 70 years of independence. They both go hand in hand this year as we celebrate this momentous occasion and we are very honoured by Her Majesty's decision to start off the year with a reception at Buckingham Palace," Indian high commissioner to the UK Y K Sinha said.