"People at home think I've already settled here," quipped Calcutta's most famous Jamaibabu, when invited to shift base to the city.

Whoever attended Amit Akshar: The Bengal Connect, an evening with Amitabh Bachchan presented by The 42 Foundation and powered by t2 at The Oberoi Grand Ball Room on Wednesday, now knows that The Man feels most at home in the city that gave him his first job back in 1963.

Steered by his Piku director Shoojit Sircar and flanked by Bengali co-stars Sharmila Tagore and Aparna Sen, with Sandip Ray also on stage, the Big B really opened up about a chapter in his life when the B wasn't that Big.

Here are some of the anecdotes Bachchan shared about his Calcutta. (For full coverage, see t2 on Saturday.)

Calcutta Rs 470: Of all the places in the world, the reason why a 21-year-old Bachchan came looking for a job in this city was simple: "Not too much of a qualification was required... you would have to drink gin in the afternoon and be able to play golf." And that tongue remained firmly in bearded cheek for the entire evening. That Bird & Co. job paid Rs 470 - "after tax", Bachchan clarified - of which Rs 300 went to the Russell Street bed-and-breakfast room he had to share with half-a-dozen others. "The lunch was free at office and dinner was phuchka paani at Victoria," came the chuckle.

Black diamond: Yash Chopra's multi-starrer Kaala Patthar was largely born out of Bachchan's experiences in the coal mines of Asansol and Dhanbad, which he had to visit as a young executive in the coal department of Bird & Co. "Many of the incidents were narrated to the writers Salim-Javed by me," he recalled. "It was one of the most depressing chapters of my life watching workers being trapped in mines but I also discovered remarkable human emotions among them."

Chickening in: The first character Amitabh Bachchan, "the superstar of the millennium", ever played was that of a chicken! "I was in kindergarten and I had to just flap my wings." He flew very soon, doing plays in his boarding school in Sherwood.

But it was at Kirori Mal College in Delhi that came his first moment of acting glory - he was picked as one of three male actors for a play in Miranda House. "That college was a pilgrimage for us boys and here I was officially walking in every evening for rehearsals!"

English stage: Joining The Amateurs theatre group in Calcutta, Bachchan "was exposed to great written work". "You remember the plays you did?" Aparna Sen asked. And out came the list - The Happiest Days of Your Life, Who's Afraid of Virginia Woolf?, A Streetcar Named Desire.... "We did our first musical The Desert Song at Rabindra Sadan, which had just come up," Bachchan remembered everything. "Any kind of beginning remains permanent," he smiled.

Toning down Babumoshay: All that theatre didn't help on the sets of Hrishikesh Mukherjee's Anand. "We were to shoot the climax scene and it was like a nightmare to me. Rajesh Khanna, the god of Indian cinema, was dying and I didn't know what was required of me." Bachchan stopped eating, thought of "the worst things that could happen to me and my family" and that "one month of pent-up energy exploded" in that "baatein karo mujhse" shot. "Then Hrishida said: 'Amit, this is too much. Just come and say your line'.... In cinema restraint is essential."

Ray of moments: The first seven minutes of Charulata and the interview sequence in Pratidwandi happen to be Bachchan's favourite Manikda movie moments. "When Dhritiman's character says his name and spells it out in the interview, you instantly know everything about him. Again, when Madhabiji goes from window to window looking down on the streets at the start of Charulata and that solo sitar plays the simplest of notes, the loneliness is expressed in one moment." If such detailing wasn't jaw-dropping, The Man even hummed the Charu theme. Note for note.

The Regret: That the Satyajit Ray-Amitabh Bachchan colloboration was limited to the Shatranj Ke Khiladi narration is one of the biggest regrets of the Big B. "Every time we met, he used to say, in that booming voice: 'Amitabh we must work together'." Sandip Ray added: "Baba loved you in Saat Hindustani, especially the torture scene.... And you were his only choice for the Shatranj Ke Khiladi narration." Jogging back to the time he spent in the legendary Bishop Lefroy Road study, Bachchan said: "It was a delight to spend time with him in his private room."

Voice Rs 50: Mrinal Sen hired Bachchan's voice for Bhuvan Shome after hearing him in an advertisement. That Nirlon ad Bachchan had done for the Rs 50 he needed for a cab ride into Filmistan Studio in Mumbai. "Every day I used to go by train and try to walk into Filmistan and the durwan used to shoo me away. After six days I went across the road and observed that taxis were allowed to go in. I asked for cab money from my friends when Jalal Agha got me that ad."

3 Bengalis: A huge part of this world may hero-worship Amitabh the actor, but of all the actors he admires three Bengalis stand tall - Utpal Dutt, Robi Ghosh and Uttam Kumar. Dutt's ability to do theatre and cinema both was something Bachchan admired.

Ghosh was more "a drinking buddy", as Shoojit revealed from his chats with the superstar. "He was Robida for everyone but Robi Kaku at home because Jaya called him Robi Kaku. His sense of timing in comedy was exceptional," said Bachchan. As for Uttam Kumar, the ability to stay natural in front of the camera stood out. "He was so natural that he actually hit me on my nose in Desh Premee!"