Actor Mouni Roy has become the centre of an online debate after reports revealed that she will be playing Varun Dhawan’s mother in an upcoming David Dhawan film despite being only a year older than him in real life. The casting decision has sparked widespread reactions on social media, with many users questioning Bollywood’s approach to female actors and age representation in films.

According to reports, Mouni, who is 40, has been cast as the mother of Varun Dhawan’s character in the untitled comedy directed by veteran filmmaker David Dhawan. Varun, meanwhile, is currently 39 years old. The minimal age gap between the actors quickly caught the attention of internet users, who criticised the casting choice and accused the industry of sidelining women into “older” roles much earlier than male actors.