Bollywood veteran Zeenat Aman has said she embraces the “aunty” tag with pride in a note on social media, prompting Karan Johar to comment that he would accept being addressed as “uncle” from now on.

“Which genius decided that ‘aunty’ is a derogatory term?” the actress wrote at the beginning of her note on Friday. She went on to say that the Indian ‘aunty’ is omnipresent and that it is not necessary to have familial ties with them in order to feel their love and care.

“She provides a shoulder to lean on, an ear to your problems, a hot meal, a silly joke, a welcoming home, a righteous scolding, a pearl of wisdom,” Zeenat wrote, sharing alongside a picture of her in a white baggy full-sleeve t-shirt with the words “aunty” stitched across it.

Challenging society’s perception of older women, Zeenat said, “When you hear the word ‘aunty’ you can imagine a frumpy nag, or you can truly think about the older women in your life and see what I see.”

“Me? I’m an aunty and proud. It’s a tag I’ll happily wear on my sleeve, or in this case, across my chest,” she added.

Zeenat recalled how her stepmother Shamim supported her through thick and thin when her sons, Zahaan and Azaan, were young. “She would cook us meals and babysit the boys and check-in on me everyday,” she said.

After highlighting the importance of the older women who brighten up our lives with their wisdom, Zeenat signed off by asking her fans to share stories about the “aunties” in their lives. “It’s as good a day as any to tag an aunty, credit an aunty, celebrate an aunty,” she concluded her note.

Bollywood filmmaker Karan Johar, who recently produced Ananya Panday’s debut web series Call Me Bae, took to the comments section and wrote that her note inspired him to embrace the “uncle” tag. “This piece has inspired me to accept and welcome being addressed as “Uncle…it’s time to embrace the inevitable and also acknowledge the positives of being a worldly wise uncle,” he said.