Sonali Kulkarni on playing Salman Khan's mother in Bharat: Stand by my choice proudly

Sonali Kulkarni’s recent performance in _Bharat_ as Salman Khan’s mother has revived the age-old topic of sexism in Bollywood. Since the actress is nearly a decade younger that Salman in real life, her casting drew criticism and opened the debate on how Bollywood looks at its actresses, especially those that are middle-aged. In a recent interview, the actress opened up about her decision to be part of Bharat.  [caption id=“attachment_6800231” align=“alignnone” width=“825”] Sonali Kulkarni (left) and Salman Khan in Bharat. Image from Twitter[/caption] The Dil Chahta Hai actress defended her role in the Ali Abbas Zafar directorial saying it was her choice to be part of the film in the capacity of Salman’s mother. “I have to stand by my choice proudly, which I do. I am touched with the audience’s and critics’ observation. I also played Hrithik [Roshan’s] adoptive mom in Mission Kashmir back in 2000 (laughs). People will definitely comment, and they are right. But it’s not like every time it comes out of criticism, it sometimes, comes out of concern also,” Sonali added. She also addressed the popular opinion that mainstream Hindi cinema has been unable to provide her with meaningful roles, a chasm that regional films have made up for. Sonali said she was grateful for the kind of work she was receiving in Bollywood. Talking about sharing screen space with the Tiger Zinda Hai actor, Sonali said she was initially quite nervous. The rumours about Salman’s alleged tardiness irked her initially. But on meeting him, such concerns were forgotten, claims the actress. “I never saw him carrying the weight of being a superstar,” said Sonali.