For someone born into the film industry, into a rich filmi legacy as this - cinema means something else. It's like a beautiful childhood that you can never leave behind. You grow up with the movies, but you can never grow out of it. It's a passion, a way of life. And believe it or not it's livelihood, too. Abhishek Bachchan is pushing that passion in different territories. As an actor, a producer and as an owner of various sports leagues. Though he's most consumed and steeped in the first, acting. He's a performer with tremendous range -he can light up the screen with fervid intensity, show extreme restrain, or make you crack up in his howlarious comedies with incredible ease. Such is his flair. Talking to us in his plush office in the burbs of Mumbai, AB tells us how he's all set to bring the house down in his upcoming multi-starrer Housefull 3. He also shares memories of watching films in single-screen theatres as child, in an era when ticket windows would have a placard pinned that read, 'Housefull.' Excerpts...

Most actors say that comedy is damn serious business?
Absolutely, it is. The actors in a comedy film need to have a certain element of inherent chemistry, because after a point you can't enact it. In a drama or in a romantic film you can create that environment, while in comedy it has to be there naturally. For me, comedy is the toughest genre, especially if you're doing situational or slapstick comedy. The pitch you need to maintain is very demanding and the timing of repartee has to be perfect. The best part of Housefull 3 was that I know my co-actors personally, even though we haven't done 30 films together. Socially we are all very close. We enjoy each other's company, and we moved everywhere as a team (Akshay Kumar, Riteish Deshmukh, Jacqueline Fernandez, Lisa Haydon and Nargis Fakhri). Nobody was insecure about anything, as we all wanted to enjoy the process. It feels good to do a film where you have actors who are very secure about their talent and what they can deliver. So you have to simply hop on board and have fun with it.

You hopped into the team as an entrant. Akshay, Riteish and Jacqueline were already part of the earlier installments. Did you comfortably settle in?
Yes, I did, though I was terrified. It's such a successful franchise and you don't want to be the one to mess it up. Sadly, movies like Housefull are by certain echelons considered frivolous, but I dare anyone to make a film as entertaining. People seem to conclude that it's frivolous film making, but it's not. In fact, it is very difficult. Also, some brilliant films have released this year but most of them have been in the more serious and dramatic genre. We haven't seen that one out-an-out comedy family entertainer film yet, so I guess people will be in the mood to watch a film like this.

Comedy as a genre is viewed very differently in our country. Not everyone accepts comedy with an open mind.
There are certain people who are opinion makers and who don't agree with that sensibility, but I don't think comedy is looked down upon. In fact, on television some of the most successful shows are comedies. We have to understand that we are making films in a country which has an audience of over 1.2 billion people. You can't cater to all and make everyone happy, as there is such disparity in sensibility and education. You are from urban city by virtue of the job that you do, and you are exposed to the greatest of cinemas. And you have the education and the liberty to be discerning about it. But if we travel 20kms from the city, it's a different story. A labourer who is working all day in the harsh summer heat doesn't want to go to the theatre and watch a story which is a slice of his life. He wants entertainment and escapism. If I make a very cerebral film, the majority of the masses will turn it down. Whereas, some people who have the understanding to appreciate such a film will love it.

Do you remember the time you went to single-screen theatres and saw the placard 'Housefull' at the ticket window? Wasn't that a different thrill?
Of course, it was. We have grown in theatres like Chandan, Gaiety Galaxy and Maratha Mandir. I have such lovely memories of watching movies there. For all the industry kids who have grown up together, if it was somebody's birthday party, they would inevitably have a trial of one of their father's films. It was superb to watch films along with treats like choco-cones, samosas and Gold Spot (orange drink). Those single-screen theatres were our temples, we grew up there. It is such a high watching films with the audience. I distinctly remember sitting in the projection room of a single screen theatre and watching my first few films. It's a huge learning experience. The first thing it teaches you is that somebody who is completely dispassionate about what you have done is watching your film and they don't care about what turmoil you've gone through or what sacrifices you've made. If the film is not entertaining they are going to let it be known. I go to watch most of my films in single screens, now it's like a tradition. The truth is that you have given the film your blood, sweat and tears, and somebody who is completely unrelated to that emotional journey is going to come and decide its fate. It is educational and refreshing and every actor should experience it. For actors like us who have grown up watching films in these theatres, it is still exciting to ask, arre Chandan mein kya reaction tha?

Do you take very long to choose a film?
No, in fact, I decide whether I am doing a film within the first 10 minutes of hearing the story. I just go with my instinct. The minute I heard the narration of Housefull 3 right here in this room, I knew I was doing it. If you don't go by your instinct while choosing your films, then you start overthinking and soon other factors start influencing your choice. Like who's the director, how is the producer, which heroine will be cast? Often we make choices based on external factors, and that happens to every actor, it is part of the journey. I feel the ideal way is to be instinctive about your choice of role. If you give it more time, even more external factors will influence you.

You have handled trollers on social media really well. With a sense of humour, too.
I believe that if it bothers you...don't be on social media. Don't read it; if you don't read it you won't know of its existence, it is as simple as that. If you're going to be available on social media then you can't want to hear only good things about yourself. So, I am okay with people who troll me, as I think they are my biggest fans. They spend more time thinking about me than my real fans, so I love them and I think that irritates them the most. Seriously, can you imagine somebody who dedicates 24 hours a day just thinking about how they can belittle you. At least, I am on their mind all day. It's the most ideal situation for an actor that people are thinking about them all the time.

Akshay Kumar is very punctual, and he prefers early morning shifts, and his work day ends at 7pm. Do you also have such strict timelines for yourself?
I reach my shoot at whatever time my director wants me there. It's not like I am not an early morning, or I am a night person. If it's a 7am shift, so be it. I know Akshay doesn't do shifts after 7pm; it is wonderful that he can cut off like that, but I don't have any such rules.

Recently, Salman Khan's appointment as one of India's goodwill ambassadors for the upcoming Rio Olympics faced criticism.What's your stand on the issue?
I think if anybody wants to do some good and lend their support that's going to help the country, there is nothing wrong with it. I work with kabaddi and football teams, and I feel very passionately about it, so honestly, I feel we need more people to support sports in our country. I grew up watching movies on sports, too, and I think it had immense influence in my life. Unfortunately, we haven't made many sports films in India. You can't make a sports documentary; it has to be a human story within that. The triumph of the human spirit (like in Bhaag Milkha Bhaag) is a story that is always going to hit home and that's the one thing you're going to remember.This whole genre is waiting to be explored in our country and I would love do it.

Still get heebie-jeebies before release?
Of course, and I think every actor does. If you're not nervous before your release it means that you haven't worked hard enough on it. If the film doesn't work, I am not going to get another job and that's my livelihood. So, I obviously feel butterflies in my stomach before its release. If I didn't, it would mean that I am complacent and didn't care about it, which is something an actor shouldn't be.