UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres has condoled the death of Bollywood star Dilip Kumar who he said had "legions of fans throughout the world". In a sign of Kumar's sway across the Subcontinent, it was a Pakistani journalist who mentioned the actor's death to the global body's spokesman at his daily briefing.

“We send our deep condolences to his family, his legions of fans throughout the world,” Guterres's spokesperson Stephane Dujarric said on Wednesday.

The 98-year-old actor's fandom spread across the world – beyond South Asia and especially into the Middle East, Africa, Eastern Europe and the Mediterranean.

Kumar, who was born as Muhammed Yusuf Khan and in pre-Independence Peshawar that is now in Pakistan, starred in over 60 films during his 54-year movie career and also produced movies. He died on Wednesday in Mumbai.