Padukone, 23, has just returned from London shooting her first comedy, Sajid Khan’s Housefull. “It’s an out-and-out comedy, a genre really tough to get right,” she says. “You can’t do comedy well without having that perfect comic timing. I’m lucky I had Sajid to guide me through it.” It must have also helped to have Akshay Kumar as a co-star, “Of course. Akshay is also so good at comedy so to have him around made it easier but also more challenging,” she says earnestly.

Also in the making is a film with Farhan Akhtar, called Karthik Calling Karthik. “This is a compete thriller,” she tells us. “If you look at the past films that I’ve done, I think I have experimented with all there is. I’m not partial to any and I’m just glad that I’ve been able to do these films. But I have to say that comedy is tougher.”

It’s going to be a six-month break between releases, but the actress has been keeping herself busy with all her shooting. “I’ve also just signed on Yash Raj’s next,” she says about the untitled film which will star Neil Nitin Mukesh and is being directed by Pradeep Sarkar.

In between, she makes sure that she keeps in touch with all her fans through e-mail. “I’ve just bought myself a new laptop,” she tells us. “I make sure that I’m completely updated with technology, be it in phones or the Internet. In today’s day and age, you need to keep up or you’ll be left far behind. I’m very particular about all the fan mail I get and make sure that I read each one personally and reply whenever I get the time.”