Bollywood star Ranbir Kapoor met his wife Alia Bhatt when he was 20 and she was nine

One of the world’s highest paid actors revealed he met his wife when he was 20 and she was nine on the set of a photoshoot .

One of the world’s highest paid movie stars, Ranbir Kapoor has sparked wild backlash online after he revealed in a new interview that he met his wife, Alia Bhatt, when she was nine and he was 20.

The photoshoot was reported to be based around child marriage, something that impacts over 1.5 million children in India annually, according to UNICEF.

“We did a photoshoot together for a movie Sanjay Leela Bhansali wanted to make called ‘Balika Vadhu’ about child marriage,” Kapoor said on the People by WTF podcast.

Kapoor, now 41, admitted that “it seems a little weird now to say,” noting that Bhatt, 31, is “11 years younger,” but that he always knew she was “special”.

Bollywood actor Ranbir Kapoor. Photo: Sujit JAISWAL / AFP.

Kapoor has previously revealed that the couple have the picture from when they first met framed in their marital home.

Following Kapoor’s interview, his remarks have since gone viral online and sparked backlash among commenters.

One wrote: “He’s a walking, talking red flag!” with another echoing the sentiment, saying: “Sorry but that’s actually gross.”

“You met your wife when she was a child and you were filming a movie about child marriages? Wow,” commented another.

While another baffled fan replied: “This makes me so uncomfortable. Obviously, at their current ages, it’s not an issue, but to romanticise a child and an adult’s meeting is so creepy.”

The pair reconnected in 2018 while working on the film Brahmāstra: Part One — Shiva and later quarantined together during the COVID-19 pandemic.

“I only had a good time with Alia. We were together during the entire lockdown,” Kapoor recalled on the podcast. “I don’t think we were frustrated with each other. … I think that really solidified our relationship.”

Ranbir Kapoor first met his wife, Alia Bhatt, on the set of a photoshoot about child marriages when she was 9-years-old. Photo: Punit PARANJPE / AFP.

The co-stars, who are two of the highest-paid actors of Hindi cinema, wed in April 2022 during a lavish ceremony in Mumbai, India.

“I’m so lucky because I married somebody who I’m so close to as a friend. Like, we can really chat, laugh,” Kapoor gushed. “She’s my best friend, and I got really lucky with that.”

The couple welcomed a daughter named Raha in November 2022.

“It’s a feeling you can’t describe,” the Animal star told Kamath of becoming a father.

“It’s like somebody has taken my heart and put it in my hands. It’s the love of your life. It’s too good. It’s too good. I never felt like that about anybody or anything in life.”

Originally published as Bollywood star Ranbir Kapoor met his wife Alia Bhatt when he was 20 and she was nine