Aamir Khan addresses 23 year age gap with Genelia D'Souza in Sitaare Zameen Par: 'That thought did come to me but...'

After two consecutive flops - Thugs of Hindostan and Laal Singh Chaddha, Aamir Khan is hoping to make his comeback with his next film Sitaare Zameen Par. The sports comedy features Khan's Gulshan being forced to teach basketball to 10 intellectually disabled children as a form of punishment for breaking traffic rules. In the highly anticipated film, 60-year-old Aamir is paired opposite Genelia D'Souza, who will turn 38 in August this year. 

Interestingly, Genelia was also paired opposite Aamir's nephew Imran Khan in his debut film Jaane Tu Ya Jaane Naa in 2008. When the Lagaan actor was asked if this strange coincidence was a concern for him considering the 23 year age gap with the Ved actress, he told Indian Express Screen, "I know. But that was a long time ago. And ab Imran bhi kafi meri age ka ho gaya hai. That thought did come to me, but in the film, we’re both playing characters in the age group of early 40s. She’s around that age. I’m 60, but in today’s day and age, we have the advantage of VFX."

"Earlier, if I played an 18-year-old, I had to rely on prosthetic. Like Anil Kapoor did in Eeshwar (1989). He was very young, but he played an 80-year-old for Christ’s sake. He was jumping his age, which is very exciting for an actor. Today, he can be made to look 80 and vice-versa via VFX. So, age is not a barrier for actors anymore", Khan further added.

Meanwhile, Sitaare Zameen Par is the official remake of the 2018 Spanish sports comedy film Campeones, which was even remade in Hollywood as Champions in 2023. The Aamir Khan film is directed by RS Prasanna, who had helmed the 2017 romantic comedy Shubh Mangal Saavdhan starring Ayushmann Khurrana and Bhumi Pednekar. Sitaare Zameen Par releases on June 20.

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