Akshay Kumar is back at what he does best with the all action ‘Baby.

It was a role he is familiar with having played a no nonsense special forces officer in ‘Holiday’ too “It’s true that I am playing another special forces role, but the characters are very different.

Holiday was a real mix of genres, crossing between thriller and rom com but Baby doesn’t really have that light hearted side.

“My role in Baby, Ajay, is a grim brutal character, as if Virat from ‘Holiday’ had lost his sense of humour. I did love that about Virat, he had two different sides to him, he was a really complex man.

“Yes, he had a social life and chased the girls, but he couldn’t ever switch off.

“ I think that even my character in ‘Holiday’ had a line which he probably wouldn’t cross; Ajay is the sort of person who would do whatever was necessary to keep his country safe.”

Preparing for the role was again very demanding, “I do like to keep my body guessing so I love trying out new techniques and exercises.

The most recent discovery I made are these heavy wooden beads I bought in Singapore. I have 50 beads, which weigh about 2-3 kilos.

“The aim is to move them around your neck, which seriously works your core. If you do it wrong, the beads will drop.

“It works your cardio, so when you finish, it tones you up from the inside out.”

The film sees him working with Neeraj Pandey again, “It’s been great working with Neeraj again, we’ve got this crazy chemistry and I’ve got such respect for him! Neeraj Pandey is one of the most complex directors I’ve ever had the pleasure of working with, he’s calm but super intense.

“He demands the best from his team and he made it clear from day one, ‘work hard or the door’s that way’.

His lasting memory of the film is filming in the desert: “It was 50 something degrees while we were out there so we just had to get it done as quickly as possible which wasn’t easy! “We needed rough desert terrain and an Arabian airport.”

‘Baby’ is out in on January 19 worldwide.