The Internet has been rife with debates about ageism in Bollywood ever since it was announced that Salman Khan will be paired opposite Alia Bhatt in Sanjay Leela Bhansali’s next.

Salman and Alia as a romantic couple ? pic.twitter.com/K1zRaPZcsE

— ᏚᎪᎷᏴᏆᎢ (@Palaaaaat) March 19, 2019

But as it turns out, the worries of the people online were unfounded.

“This is ridiculous. I will NOT be romancing Alia. She’s 25,” said Salman Khan, in a press conference to promote solar-powered bicycles that would not kill human beings sleeping on the footpath, in case you run over them by accident, “She would be playing the role of the mother of the girl I’m actually paired with.”

Salman went on to clear that his actual love interest would be of an appropriate age-gap. “Alia’s daughter in the movie will be a 19-year-old girl. Times are changing and we have to change with them,” he said.

This is a big step in the right direction for Bollywood. For years Bollywood actors have been paired opposite women with vastly disproportionate age gaps between them. With this movie, we will be seeing a 53-year-old man romance a 19-year-old girl, just the way it’s supposed to be. Kudos to the filmmakers for taking this bold step forward.