Thousands of people are defying a nationwide coronavirus lockdown in Bangladesh to see Rani, a 51-centimeter (20-inch) tall cow whose owners claim it is the world's smallest.

The 23-month-old dwarf cow has become a media star with scores of newspapers and television stations throwing the spotlight on the tiny bovine at a farm near Dhaka.

Pictures of Rani on social media platforms have set off a tourist frenzy.

Despite a nationwide transport shutdown following a record coronavirus infections and deaths, people are flocking in rickshaws to the farm in Charigram, 30 kilometres (19 miles) southwest of Dhaka.

"I have never seen anything like this in my life. Never," said Rina Begum, 30, who came from a neighbouring town.

Rani is 66 centimetres (26 inches) long and weighs only 26 kilograms (57 pounds) but the owners say it is 10 centimetres shorter than the smallest cow in Guinness World Records.